Johnny Depp appears on stage with Jeff Beck at Sheffield gig

Johnny Depp was a surprise special guest at Jeff Beck‘s gig in Sheffield last night (May 29), with the pair performing covers of John Lennon, Marvin Gaye and Jimi Hendrix.

Depp, who is currently awaiting the verdict in his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, hopped on a plane after closing arguments were heard in court on Friday (May 27), with a decision expected early this week.

During the three song performance, Depp stayed quiet on stage, instead just playing guitar along with Beck to three classics from Lennon, Gaye and Hendrix.

Advertisement

Watch footage of the performances below.

Depp is suing his ex-wife Heard for defamation over a 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post, where she wrote about being a survivor of domestic violence.

Heard didn’t mention Depp by name in the piece, though Depp’s lawyers argue it falsely implies she was sexually and physically abused by him in their marriage. She has also filed a counterclaim against Depp, arguing he has created a smear campaign against her.

Advertisement

The pair met while filming 2011 film The Rum Diary and married in 2015. Heard filed for divorce from Depp in 2016, accusing him of physical and verbal abuse. Depp has denied all the allegations, stating they’re “not based in any species of truth”.

Depp previously lost a libel lawsuit against The Sun in 2020 over an article from April 2018 which referred to him as a “wife beater”. In the ruling, Judge Mr Justice Nicol said he found the words to be “substantially true”.

During the trial, Heard has reportedly fired her public relations team over the negative press that she’s received across the trial.

The actress is believed to have sacked crisis management specialists Precision Strategies on April 28 after being subject to “bad headlines” since the trial began in March.

According to The New York Post, a source said Heard is “frustrated with her story not being told effectively”. The trial continues.