Johnny Depp files for delay in defamation case trial to shoot 'Fantastic Beasts 3'

Johnny Depp has filed a request to delay the defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. It is because the actor has to shoot for his role in Fantastic Beasts 3 in London. Depp is suing Heard for an article she wrote in The Washington Post in which she alleges that he was violent towards her. This is a separate trail from the ongoing one where Depp is suing the publisher of The Sun, and the hearing is in London.

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Johnny Depp requests delay in trail to shoot 'Fantastic Beasts 3'

According to the documents obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, Johnny Depp is seeking a delay in the defamation trial due to Fantastic Beasts 3 filming. He filed a motion for continuance at the Fairfax Country, Virginia, court to push the trail between March and June 2021. The current dates for the trail are from January 11 to January 28, 2021.

However, Warner Bros. Studios is planning to begin principal photography for the third Fantastic Beasts film from October in London. The process will be finishing by the end of February 2021. Johnny Depp will be reprising his character, Gellert Grindelwald, in the movie. The development was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the actor has made a prior commitment, he is asking for a delay in the trial.

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Johnny Depp’s filing states, “When the Court set the current trial date in this case, Mr. Depp understood that Warner Bros. planned to shoot ‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ in London long before January 11, 2021. COVID-19 disrupted the studio’s plans, causing repeated postponements. With conditions in London having improved somewhat, Warner Bros. has now set a shooting schedule that conflicts with the trial date in this case”. The filing continues, “Mr. Depp would face potential liability for breach of contract should he fail to comply with the schedule contractually dictated by Warner Bros. Though Mr. Depp is eager to proceed to trial, he faces an untenable situation over which he has no control”.

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Production is resuming in the United Kingdom as the threat of COVID-19 appears to be reduced for the time being. Warner Bros. is taking extreme precaution and following the guidelines as they plan to resume shooting on the multi-starrer project, Fantastic Beasts 3. A hearing on Johnny Depp’s filing will take place on September 11, 2020. Meanwhile, Amber Heard is also expected to reprise her role as Mera in Aquaman 2 and begin filming sometime in 2021.