Johnny Depp and Amber Heard: From Romance to Rancor

Desert Palm Achievement Award recipient actor Johnny Depp and wife actress Amber Heard pose at the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala in Palm Springs, California, January 2, 2016. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
Desert Palm Achievement Award recipient actor Johnny Depp and wife actress Amber Heard pose at the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala in Palm Springs, California, January 2, 2016. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
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Johnny Depp and Amber Heard: From Romance to Rancor

Desert Palm Achievement Award recipient actor Johnny Depp and wife actress Amber Heard pose at the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala in Palm Springs, California, January 2, 2016. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
Desert Palm Achievement Award recipient actor Johnny Depp and wife actress Amber Heard pose at the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala in Palm Springs, California, January 2, 2016. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard were married for just 15 months but their stormy relationship has been laid bare at a London trial where Depp is seeking to prove he was defamed in a 2018 British newspaper article that termed him a "wife-beater."

The following are key facts about the romance that blossomed and turned sour for the stars of "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Aquaman."

2009 - Depp and Heard meet on the set of "The Rum Diary," where they play each other's love interest.

2010 - Heard, who is in a relationship with artist Tasya van Ree, publicly comes out as bisexual.

2010 - Depp is ranked by Forbes.com as Hollywood's highest paid actor with an estimated $75 million earnings for the year largely due to his role in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise.

2012 - Depp splits with his partner of 14 years, French actress Vanessa Paradis. Depp was previously engaged to Winona Ryder. After their split in 1993, he changed a tattoo from Winona Forever to Wino Forever.

2013 - Depp and Heard appear together during promotions of his movie "The Lone Ranger."

April 2014 - Depp says he and Heard are engaged, calling her "sweet as can be and very good for me."

February 2015 - Depp, 51, and Heard, 28, marry. In July, Heard is charged with smuggling the couple's two dogs into Australia without a permit or observing quarantine.

May 2016 - Heard files for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. Heard obtains a restraining order against Depp and claims Depp was abusive to her throughout their marriage. Depp denies the allegations and accuses Heard of trying to blackmail him into a better financial settlement.

August 2016 - Depp and Heard announce a divorce settlement. under which Heard receives $7 million, which she donates to charity. They issue a joint statement saying their relationship was "intensely passionate and at times volatile but always bound by love," and that there was "never any intent of physical or emotional harm." They also agree not to disparage each other in future. The divorce is finalized in January 2017.

January 2017 - Depp files a $25 million lawsuit accusing his former business managers of fraud and financial mismanagement. His former managers file a counter suit claiming $550,000 in unpaid fees and damages, and reveal details of lavish spending by Depp. The two sides reach a settlement in July 2018.

August 2017 - Heard splits with entrepreneur Elon Musk after about a year. Their romance is rekindled in January 2018 before they split for a second time.

December 2017 - Author J.K. Rowling defends the decision to cast Depp in her movie "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" after a backlash from fans over the fallout from Depp's divorce.

April 2018 - Britain's Sun newspaper publishes an article by its executive editor Dan Wootton that calls Depp a "wife-beater."

June 2018 - Depp files a libel lawsuit against the Sun.

December 2018 - Heard writes an opinion piece in the Washington Post about domestic violence but does not name Depp.

March 2019 - Depp files a $50 million defamation lawsuit over Heard's Washington Post opinion piece and claims Heard was the abusive partner. The lawsuit has yet to be settled.

July 7, 2020 - Depp begins testimony in London in his libel case against the Sun newspaper.

July 27 - Closing arguments are expected in London. A verdict is expected to be announced later.



Spotify Down for Thousands of Users, Downdetector Shows

FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
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Spotify Down for Thousands of Users, Downdetector Shows

FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Headphones are seen in front of a logo of online music streaming service Spotify, February 18, 2014 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo

Music streaming platform Spotify was down for thousands of users on Monday, according to Downdetector.com.

There were more than 30,000 reports of issues with the platform in the US as of 09:22 a.m. ET, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources, Reuters reported.

Outages were reported in Canada with more than 2,900 reports at 9:22 a.m. ET; UK had more than 8,800 app issues as of 9:22 a.m. ET.

Spotify did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The actual number of affected users may differ from what's shown because these reports are user-submitted.


Netflix Says its Position on Deal with Warner Bros Discovery Unchanged

FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
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Netflix Says its Position on Deal with Warner Bros Discovery Unchanged

FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Netflix logo is pictured in Los Angeles, California, US, September 15, 2022. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

Netflix's decision to acquire assets from Warner Bros Discovery has not changed and the hostile bid from Paramount Skydance was "entirely expected", its co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos said in a letter to employees on Monday, Reuters reported.

The streaming giant is committed to theatrical releases of Warner Bros' movies, saying it is "an important part of their business and legacy".

"We haven't prioritized theatrical in the past because that wasn't our business at Netflix. When this deal closes, we will be in that business," the letter stated.

Netflix said its deal is "solid" and it is confident that it is great for consumers and can pass regulatory hurdles.


35 Countries to Compete in Next Year’s Eurovision After 5 Countries Announce Boycott over Israel 

Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
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35 Countries to Compete in Next Year’s Eurovision After 5 Countries Announce Boycott over Israel 

Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)
Nemo of Switzerland celebrates holding the trophy after winning the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (AP)

Organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest on Monday announced a final list of 35 countries that will take part in the glitzy pop-music gala next year, after five countries said they would boycott due to discord over Israel’s participation.

Contest organizers announced the list for the 2026 finale, set to be held in Vienna in May, after five participants — Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain — earlier this month announced plans to sit it out.

A total of 37 countries took part this year, when Austria's JJ won. Three countries — Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania — will return, after skipping the event for artistic or financial reasons in recent years.

The walkout by some of the contest's most stalwart and high-profile participants — Ireland shared the record of wins with Sweden — put political discord on center stage and has overshadowed the joyful, feel-good nature of the event.

Last week, the 2024 winner — singer Nemo of Switzerland. who won with the pop-operatic ode “The Code.”— announced plans to return the winner’s trophy because Israel is being allowed to compete.

Organizers this month decided to allow Israel to compete, despite protests about its conduct of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and allegations that Israel manipulated the vote in favor of its contestants.

The European Broadcasting Union, a group of public broadcasters from 56 countries that runs the glitzy annual event, had sought to dispel concerns about vote-rigging, but the reforms announced weren't enough to satisfy the holdouts.

The musical extravaganza draws more than 100 million viewers every year — one of the world's most-watched programs — but has been roiled by the war in Gaza for the past two years, stirring protests outside the venues and forcing organizers to clamp down on political flag-waving.

Experts say the boycott ahead of the event's 70th anniversary amounts to one of the biggest crises the contest has faced, at a time when many public broadcasters face funding pressures and social media has lured away some eyeballs.

Israeli officials have hailed the decision by most EBU member broadcasters who supported its right to participate and warned of a threat to freedom of expression by embroiling musicians in a political issue.