There are a number of different claims and theories on how Depp injured his finger. In March 2015, Varietyreported that Depp was injured while on location in Australia for the filming Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Depp wasn’t working when he was injured, and at the time the cause and nature of the injury weren’t disclosed. He reportedly was flown back to the United States for surgery; Entertainment Tonightlater reported that the injury was to Depp’s hand. Later, much uglier tales came out about the specifics of the injury, as well as how it happened. Here’s what we know so far based largely on what’s been revealed in testimony from Depp’s defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard.
Was Johnny Depp’s finger cut off?
Depp’s finger wasn’t cut off, but the tip of it was. In August 2016, TMZpublished gruesome, grisly photos of Depp’s injury. According to TMZ, Heard accused Depp of being both drunk and high on the drug ecstasy, as well as of smashing a plastic phone against a wall and breaking bottles and windows. Heard reportedly alleged it was one of those items that caused Depp’s injury. She also accused Depp of then dipping his injured finger in paint and using it to paint several phrases around the villa where the then-couple was staying. These phrases reportedly included “Easy Amber” and “Billy Bob,” the latter a reference to actor Billy Bob Thornton, with whom Depp reportedly accused Heard of having an affair. Depp maintains that he injured his finger when Heard threw two glass bottles of vodka at him. Heard has consistently and vehemently denied the accusation.
Is Johnny Depp missing a finger?
Depp isn’t missing a finger … but his severed fingertip did go missing briefly, according to testimony from Depp’s defamation trial. Depp’s concierge physician, Dr. David Kipper, testified in a recorded deposition that he instructed staff to search for the fingertip throughout Depp and Heard’s Australian villa. Dr. Kipper recalled that a chef found the severed fingertip in Heard and Depp’s kitchen. Dr. Kipper said that there was blood and broken glass throughout the home, but that he couldn’t determine the cause of the broken glass. Depp’s nurse, Debbie Lloyd, said that it was a house manager who found Depp’s fingertip.
What exactly is Johnny Depp’s finger injury?
The tip of Depp’s finger was severed off, though it remains unclear exactly how that occurred. Depp recalled feeling “heat” on his hand when it occurred and compared the blood flow to “Vesuvius,” the volcano that erupted and destroyed ancient Pompeii. Depp also recalled being able to see his bones sticking out from the injury. Dr. Kipper testified in his deposition that Depp texted him that he cut off his own finger. “I cut the top of my middle finger off,” the text read. “What should I do? Except of course go to a hospital. I’m so embarrassed for jumping into anything with her.” Dr. Kipper said that Depp also told an ER doctor that he’d accidentally severed his own fingertip with a knife. When testifying on the stand, Depp said of the injury and its cause, “I didn’t want to disclose that it had been Ms. Heard that had thrown a vodka bottle at me and then took my finger off. I didn’t want to get her in trouble. I tried to just keep things as copacetic and easy as possible for everyone. I didn’t want to put her into that mix.”
What happened to Johnny Depp’s severed finger?
According to Lloyd, Depp’s house manager found his severed fingertip and brought it to an emergency room where Depp was receiving treatment. Depp recalled that after the incident, he visited a surgeon in Australia to reattach the fingertip, at which time Depp recalled lying to the surgeon as well about the cause of his injury. “He asked me what happened to my finger, and I once again lied,” he said on the stand. “I stuck to the story that it was smashed on a large accordion door, and he looked at me as if I was lying. And the next thing I heard was, ‘Sir, that is a wound of velocity.’” Depp also revealed that CGI was used to hide his injury in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. “They would put little green dots on the splint or whatever, the bandages,” Depp recalled in his testimony. “So in post-production, they could use what’s called computer-generated imagery, CGI, to erase the bandage and replace with it a normal finger. And that’s how we finished the film.” Next, get expert, step-by-step tips on how to get a divorce.
