Johnny Depp and Paul Bettany’s friendship has been blown-up in the spotlight after chilling texts between the two were read out to a court room this week.
The texts were read made public on Wednesday, July 8, during the second day of Depp’s court case at London’s High Court, where he is giving evidence in his libel trial against News Group Newspapers and its executive editor Dan Wotton over a story published in The Sun in 2018.
In the story, the Pirates of the Caribbean star was labelled a “wife beater” in the publication’s headline – which he strongly denies.
The courtroom, which Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard sat in, heard how Depp messaged Avengers actor Paul to discuss his former wife, and the alleged texts have shocked the showbiz world.
But how did the pair become friends? What do they do together? Daily Star Online has taken a look in the pair’s lifelong bromance.
Blossoming bromance from first sight
Paul Bettany and Johnny Depp at the “Transcendence” Press Conference at the Four Seasons Hotel on April 6, 2014 in Beverly Hills, California (Image: WireImage)
There is a stigma in Los Angeles that it is harder to make friends as you age but for two Hollywood stars, that simply was not the case.
For Johnny and Paul it was apparently love at first sight as the pair immediately sparked up a bromance.
They met while filming The Tourist in Venice in 2010 and Paul says it was love from first sight.
During press for their most recent film together, Transendence in 2014, Paul spilled on the moment they released they would be best friends for life to a publication called Toronoto Sun..
“Johnny and I met across a crowded room, and I just had a feeling we would be lifelong friends. And that transpired,” says Bettany.
“It was on the set of The Tourist in Venice. I looked at him and he looked at me, and we haven’t stopped laughing since.”
And funnily enough in the artificial intelligence thriller Transendence, Bettany plays the best-friend colleague of the neuroscientist played by Depp, whose consciousness is preserved on the Net after he dies.
Defending claims his best pal is a ‘violent man’
Paul Bettany and Johnny Depp attend a photocall for the film ‘Mortdecai – Der Teilzeitgauner’ on January 18, 2015 in Berlin, Germany (Image: Getty Images)
Following his divorce from Amber Heard, the actress claims Depp was violent towards her and he is now in court in London where he is giving evidence in his libel trial against News Group Newspapers and its executive editor Dan Wotton.
The case is over a story published in The Sun in 2018 in which the publication dubbed Depp “wife beater” in the headline.
This led to friend Paul rushing to defend the Edward Scissorhand’s actor.
In 2016 Los Angeles Superior Court Judge issued a temporary domestic violence restraining order against Depp after his wife at the time Amber Heard alleged he had been violent towards her during their 15-month marriage.
In court documents requesting the order, Heard wrote: “I live in fear that Johnny will return to the residence unannounced to terrorise me, physically and emotionally.”
After the documents were made public as she filed for divorce from Depp citing irreconcilable differences, Paul shared his thoughts.
Defending Depp, he said: “He’s the sweetest, kindest, gentlest man that I’ve ever known.”
Paul also tweeted at the time: “Known Johnny Depp for years and through several relationships.
“He’s the sweetest, kindest, gentlest man that I’ve ever known. Just saying.”
He then tweeted moments later: “All I’m saying-Domestic violence is a serious allegation. Trial by twitter is unhelpful. Let the facts come out before rushing to judgment.”
‘It really was like falling in love’
Johnny and Paul starring in Transcendence (Image: © 2013 Alcon Entertainment, LLC)
Four years ago Paul appeared on a SiriusXM Entertainment podcast where he spoke about his directional film debut Shelter with host Andy Cohen.
The Avengers star also spoke lovingly about his friendship with Depp, saying meeting him “really was like falling in love”.
After Andy asked what his friendship with Depp is like and “what they do together, smoke?”, Paul said: “Er we play the guitar a lot.
“You know, I sort of saw him across a crowded room in Venice and it really was like we were falling in love.
“We just, I just knew then that we were going to be lifelong friends and erm, and, I rarely have that experience.”
Paul continued: “We’ve laughed. Yano we’ve spent a lot of time together over the years making three films together and we’ve just laughed through every single one of those minutes.
“He makes me roar with laughter. He’s a very funny man. And wildly the most generous human being I have ever come across.”
Andy joked: “Oh, how romantic!”
To which Paul quipped back: “It was! It was very romantic.”
Courtroom hears pair’s chilling texts
Actors Johnny and and Paul attend the UK Premiere of “Mortdecai” at Empire Leicester Square on January 19, 2015 in London, England (Image: Getty Images)
Depp is currently three days into his trial and during it texts were read out that were exchanged between the American actor and his pal Paul.
On the second day of the trial, attended by both Depp and ex-wife Heard, the court heard how Depp messaged Paul Bettany discussing his former spouse.
The Sun’s lawyers Sasha Wass QC read out texts Depp exchanged with Bettany, with whom he admitted taking drugs.
Bettany suggested they should buy Amber Heard “a beaver” so they could launch a website under the title: “Johnny Depp shaves Amber Heard’s beaver.”
The actor said “they would make a lot of money”.
In further messages, Bettany later claimed Amber “was a witch” and suggested they should burn her.
Depp replied: “Let’s drown her before burning her. I will f*** her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure she is dead.”
Ms Wass suggested the messages were because Depp resented Ms Heard for trying to stop him taking drugs.
Depp said Bettany knew about the rows he and Ms Heard had been having – and Depp told the court it was a “disrespectful” way of talking about Heard.
“It was not the most respectful way to speak about Ms Heard,” Depp said, adding, “Bettany and Heard had their differences and did not like each other very much.”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
