Heard brought up Moss while testifying on May 5, recounting a March 2015 fight in which she punched Depp in the face out of fear he was going to shove her sister Whitney down a staircase.
The “Aquaman” actress said she “instantly” thought about “Kate Moss and the stairs” — prompting Depp lawyer Ben Chew to turn and fist-pump.
Moss was not originally expected to testify because the rumored staircase incident wasn’t related to a specific accusation in the Virginia case. But Heard’s mention of the model paved the way for Depp’s team to call her to testify, experts said.
The testimony will come on the third to last day of the six-week trial, which is set to wrap up Friday. Moss could be a crucial character witness for Depp.
Depp, 58, is suing ex-wife Heard for $50 million over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed where she called herself a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” Her essay didn’t name the actor, but he claims it defamed him, ruining his career and causing him to lose millions in revenue.
Heard countersued Depp for $100 million, saying he defamed her in 2020 when he and his lawyers made statements to the press that she had fabricated her allegations of abuse.
During Depp’s 2020 UK trial against Britain’s The Sun, Heard alleged that her ex-husband had once shoved Moss down a flight of stairs.
Describing the same fight involving her sister, Heard told the British court at the time: “I remembered information I had heard [that] he pushed a former girlfriend — I believe it was Kate Moss — down the stairs. I had heard this rumor from two people and it was fresh in my mind.”
Depp sued The Sun over an article that branded him a “wife beater.” He lost the case after the UK high court substantiated the majority of Heard’s allegations of abuse.
