Actress Winona Ryder is due to give evidence today in support of ex-fiance Johnny Depp in his High Court libel battle with The Sun newspaper.
The Stranger Things star, 48, was engaged to Depp for three years in the early 1990s, and she has already come to his defence over allegations of domestic violence.
Depp, 57, is locked in a blockbuster court fight with The Sun’s publishers, News Group Newspapers, after the star was dubbed a ‘wife beater’ in a 2018 article by executive editor Dan Wootton.
The actor’s ex-wife, actress Amber Heard, 34, claims she was subjected to repeated bouts of violence fuelled by drink and drugs, but Depp insists the claims are all invented.
Ms Ryder, in a statement to US court proceedings earlier this year, said: “I do not want to call anyone a liar but from my experience of Johnny, it is impossible to believe that such horrific allegations are true.
“I find it extremely upsetting knowing him as I do.”
Ms Ryder is due to give evidence to the High Court in London this afternoon via videolink from Los Angeles.
In the US court, where Depp is bringing a US$50 million (£40m) defamation lawsuit against Heard, Ms Ryder said: “I knew Johnny very well years ago. We were together as a couple for four years, and I counted him as my best friend, and as close to me as family.
“I count our relationship as one of the more significant relationships of my life.”
She added: “I obviously was not there during his marriage to Amber, but, from my experience, which was so wildly different, I was absolutely shocked, confused and upset when I heard the accusations against him.
“The idea that he is an incredibly violent person is the farthest thing from the Johnny I knew and loved. I cannot wrap my head around these accusations.”
Also due to give evidence in support of Depp is Katherine Kendall, an actress who has accused disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of preying on her and is part of the #MeToo movement.
Ben King and Kevin Murphy, who have worked as Depp’s estate managers, are also due in the witness box, as well as Kate James, a former assistant to Heard.
Yesterday, the court heard claims that Heard had attacked Depp on his private Bahamas island with a can of lacquer thinner, and a bodyguard said Depp had accused the actress of severing his finger with a vodka bottle.
Celebrity stylist Samantha McMillen said she had seen no signs of injury on two occasions when Heard said she was attacked, including when she claimed to have had two black eyes before an appearance on the Late Late Show with James Corden.
Depp’s LA housekeeper also told how she was “horrified and disgusted” when she discovered faeces in the star’s bed at his penthouse.
Hilda Vargas said: “I pulled back the top sheet on the bed and saw a large pile of faeces”, saying it had an “awful smell” and she knew it was from a human.
Depp claims Heard or a friend soiled the bed, while Heard claims one of the couple’s dogs was responsible for the 2016 incident as their marriage was collapsing.
The trial continues.