Amber Heard relieved public relations firm Precision Strategies from their duties Thursday, after allegedly being displeased by the way she was portrayed in the press during her trial against ex-husband Johnny Depp, the New York Post reported.
The actress has reportedly hired Shane Communications as a replacement mere days before taking the stand to give her testimony in the $50 million defamation suit. One source close to the actress said that Heard was “frustrated with her story not being told effectively,” according to the New York Post. Another source indicated that “she doesn’t like bad headlines.”
Amber Heard fired her PR firm and hired a new one because she’s frustrated with the negative coverage and “bad headlines” she’s receiving during the trial. Suggestion for Heard: You want better headlines? Don’t poop in someone’s bed. pic.twitter.com/RjvvcfdXdv
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) May 2, 2022
Depp is suing Heard for defamation after she wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post in 2018 allegedly portraying him as an abuser, according to the outlet.
The trial has unearthed a number of personal stories about the couple’s private life, including accusations that Heard had defecated on Depp’s side of the bed, and allegedly threw a bottle of vodka at him which sliced off the tip of his finger.
This led to social media backlash, with some calling for Heard to be removed from the cast of the upcoming film “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” according to Insider. (RELATED: Joe Rogan Shares Powerful Thoughts About The Johnny Depp/Amber Heard Trial)
Day 12 begins in #JohnnyDeppvsAmberHeard defamation trial. #AmberHeard fired her PR firm over the weekend.
She was apparently unhappy with how things were going in advance of her oncoming testimony.
WATCH #CourtTV LIVE – #DeppvsHeardTrial Day 12 – https://t.co/tnYdPcDRMU pic.twitter.com/HK8HB4ywc9
— Court TV (@CourtTV) May 2, 2022
As the courtroom drama unraveled, Heard’s concern for her reputation reportedly grew, which led to this abrupt change in firms. The move has been met with some criticism, the New York Post noted.
“After years of narrative building, you can’t change the public’s opinion in the three weeks when someone is suing you in a case,” one crisis management insider said, according to the outlet.
Lis Smith, a former campaign adviser to Pete Buttigieg said, “it’s crazy to change teams in the middle of a trial like this because you don’t like the headlines,” the outlet reported.
The case is unfolding in Fairfax, Virginia, and Heard could testify as soon as Tuesday, the New York Post noted.