Johnny Depp associates testify about challenges working with him
Tracey Jacobs, who testified in a recorded deposition, said that she represented Depp for 30 years as his talent agent and said at one point that he was “the biggest star in the world.” Jacobs said Depp terminated her around the same time he parted ways with other business associates in his life.
Jacobs testified that she was honest with Depp that showing up late consistently to sets and his behavior, including drug and alcohol use, was hurting his career. She testified that Depp regularly had to use an earpiece while on set in order to be fed his lines.
“His star had dimmed due to it getting harder to get him jobs given the reputation that he’d acquired due to his lateness and other things,” Jacobs testified. “People were talking and the question was out there about his behavior.”
Depp’s ‘Pirates’ future
Jacobs testified that, at one point, Depp was in a state of “financial desperation” and asked the agency to give him $20 million.
Long-time Disney executive Tina Newman, whose deposition was recorded in February and played for jurors on Thursday, said that she did not recall seeing Heard’s op-ed and that she does not know if Depp is being considered for a role in the sixth “Pirates” film.
“That’s above my head,” Newman testified. “I just know it’s a project that’s possibly in development at the studio.”
Jurors also heard a recorded deposition from Depp’s former business manager Joel Mandel, who Depp parted ways with in 2016 and whose company Depp sued in 2017, accusing it of mismanaging his earnings. The lawsuit was settled in 2018.
Mandel testified that around 2010 it became harder to work with Depp due to a seemingly daily use of substances.
“What I had always experienced as someone who liked to enjoy his wine at the end of the day became consumption that seemed excessive,” Mandel testified. “The ability to coordinate and find times when he would meet became more difficult. It became clear over time that there were issues with alcohol and drugs. And that translated into more erratic behavior, more stressful behavior, more times when it was difficult to engage in the kinds of conversation I needed to do my job.”
Mandel said he began very regularly expressing his concerns over Depp’s “very dire financial circumstances” in 2015 and said that while Depp’s income was very significant, so was his spending. He said at one point Depp paid $300,000 a month to staff.
Heard’s legal team has pointed to the fact that several of Depp’s paid staff testified as part of his case…
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