Lance Bass Deletes Tasteless TikTok Mocking Amber Heard's Testimony

After receiving backlash for making light of domestic violence, NSYNC’s Lance Bass deleted a TikTok video he posted this week that mocked Amber Heard’s testimony about the first time Johnny Depp allegedly hit her.

The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star is suing Heard for $50 million over a 2018 Washington Post editorial that described her as a victim of domestic violence and implied that Depp was the perpetrator, although it did not name him. 

Few celebrities have publicly commented on the high-profile trial, which began in mid-April. Depp’s fandom, however, has been incredibly vocal online, turning moments from the trial into widely shared memes.

Bass decided to join the fray with a 30-second video that shows him acting out a scene Heard described on the stand earlier this month.

Heard said that when she asked about a faded tattoo Depp had on his arm, he told her it said “wino,” which she took as a joke, laughing it off. But then Depp smacked her across the face, she said, explaining that she was taken off guard, and laughed again because she “didn’t know what else to do.”

Depp allegedly turned on her, saying, in Heard’s telling, “You think it’s funny, bitch? You think you’re a funny bitch?” before slapping her again. Upon hitting her a third time, Heard said she lost her balance on the edge of the couch where she was sitting. 

Bass filmed himself wobbling on the edge of a gray couch before crawling down to the floor as Heard’s audio played: “I was just sitting there on this carpet, looking at the dirty carpet wondering how I ended up on this carpet.” 

“Had to do it!” Bass captioned his video.

The trial has been streamed live for weeks, providing a treasure trove of content for fans to nitpick, selectively edit and interact with.

On Twitter and TikTok, Depp fans have gleefully mocked Heard’s facial expressions as she testified to the abuse she says she endured at the hands of her ex-husband. A screenshot of Heard in the courtroom with a neutral expression on her face was repeatedly shared with captions suggesting she “forgot” to act sad, although the context of the moment was not provided.

Many content creators have play-acted a particular snippet of testimony under the assumption it betrays dishonesty: During an audio clip of Heard describing how she “turned to look at” Depp after he allegedly slapped her, TikTok users record themselves turning their backs to an imagined Depp in a piece of choreography that has Heard speaking to the wall. 

Depp, on the other hand, is portrayed as falsely accused Rolling Stone reported that the #JusticeforJohnnyDepp hashtag has been used billions of times, dwarfing the millions of mentions of #IStandwithAmberHeard. His responses to Heard’s lawyers are edited to be hilariously sassy , prompting fans to leave vitriolic comments about his ex-wife.

Many advocates for domestic violence survivors fear that the public reaction to the Depp-Heard trial will discourage people from sharing their stories of abuse in the future, for fear of being mocked as mercilessly as Heard. 

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline .