US actor Johnny Depp loses libel case against British tabloid

US film star Johnny Depp has lost his libel case against a 2018 British tabloid story in which he was a named a "wife beater," London's High Court ruled on Monday.

Depp's lawsuit against The Sun's publisher, News Group Newspapers (NGN), and its executive editor Dan Wootton, drew worldwide attention over the claim that he had attacked his ex-wife Amber Heard during their relationship.

In his ruling, the judge dismissed the "Pirates Of The Caribbian" star's claim, saying NGN had proved what was in the article to be "substantially true," according to the PA news agency.

The lawsuit was based on print and online stories in 2018 headlined: "Gone Potty: How can JK Rowling be 'genuinely happy' casting wife-beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?"

The 16-day trial in July featured claims of brutal violence and sensational revelations about the couple's tempestuous relationship.

Drinking and drug use

The two met on the set of "The Rum Diary," a comedy released in 2011. They married in 2015, separated the following year, and divorced in 2017.

The court heard about Depp's drinking and drug use during the three-week hearing, and other details of their roller-coaster relationship including how Depp lost a finger tip when allegedly hit by a vodka bottle thrown while they were in Australia in 2015.

Depp is also suing Heard for defamation over a Washington Post opinion piece, in a complaint filed in 2019.

Heard's US lawyer Elaine Charlson Bredehoft said in a statement that the actress's legal team would present more evidence in the case, PA reported.