(Crankers) Amber Heard’s first interview post-trial was referred to as a failure by experts. She’s now demanding that Johnny Depp do his own top network interview, just like she did.
WATCH:
When asked about Johnny Depp’s lawyer’s comment that Amber Heard gave “the performance of a lifetime” when she testified that her ex-husband had abused her, Heard praised Depp’s acting skills. But when it comes to Heard’s own interview, she tried making several points but many experts suggested she lacks credibility.
“Says the lawyer for the man who convinced the world he had scissors for fingers,” Heard said with disdain during an interview with “Today” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie on NBC News. “I’m the performer?” she asked.
As Danny Deraney, a Los Angeles-based crisis communications expert, watched the interview aired on NBC News on June 17th, he recoiled. How did highlighting that Depp was an actor help Heard’s point of view?
There is a broad consensus among experts that the Heard’s interview was a failure and that it may have been a mistake to do it.
Juda Engelmayer, the president of HeraldPR, stated that one of the biggest problems with Heard’s interview was her inability to acknowledge that she did not appear credible during the trial.
Out of the three claims made in her counterclaim against Depp, jurors only gave her one victory, claiming that Depp defamed her through his attorney Adam Waldman. But while that win carried $2 million in compensatory damages, it awarded $0 in punitive damages, indicating that jurors may not have believed that Depp was to blame.
On the other hand, Depp ran the table on all three of his claims against Heard, winning punitive and compensatory damages on all counts.
Heard has every right to stand her ground, as pointed out by Eric Dezenhall, CEO of Dezenhall Resources, a DC-based crisis management firm. While the public may have had a better response to a thoughtful stance, “it clearly doesn’t seem to be something she believes,” Dezenhall said.
Since Heard is planning to appeal the verdict, according to her attorney Elaine Bredehoft, she will have to carry on with the same narrative she had while on the stand. That means she can’t afford to give up any ground, Dezenhall said.
The experts that were interviewed by Insider said that Heard may have made a mistake by submitting to interviews so soon after the June 1 verdict.
“I always tell people that you don’t need to rush into doing anything. You don’t need to rush into doing press,” Deraney declared to Insider.
Deraney, who formerly represented several MeToo accusers, said it was possible that Heard may have gone against the advice of her public relations team in accepting to hold an interview with Guthrie. He said he didn’t believe that Heard “did well” in the interview and would have been “disappointed” if Heard had been his client.
The interview was not a complete dud for Heard. Engelmayer said Heard did a good job of not appearing angry or bitter.
“Some actors in the past, when they’ve been through tough things, they’ve been mean and angry and she didn’t. At the very least, her camera image is fine,” Engelmayer said.
Engelmayer was reportedly more positive about Heard’s career prospects, especially from the supporters of MeToo movement in Hollywood.
