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Since her much-publicized divorce from Johnny Depp, there has been interest in who Amber Heard is dating and what her relationships were like both before and after her marriage.
Heard was married to Depp from 2015 to 2016. Heard came out as bisexual in 2010 at a GLAAD even celebrating the organization’s 25th anniversary. In an interview with The Economist in 2017, Heard opened up about why she decided to publicly come out at that time. “Well, I always say in response — when I hear someone comment about me coming out, I think it’s funny because I was never in,” she said. “In part because I was very stubborn, I guess, and also in part because I just didn’t feel it was wrong.” She continued, “I was always out. I was an activist. I went to protests. I refused to not bring my partner at the time, but no one ever asked me about. And an outlet specifically asked me who I was there with that night and who that person was to me and I just answered honestly, the way I always answered had there not been a tape recorder on me.”
Heard also discussed how coming out affected her career and reputation. “Then I saw I was attached to a label … I never have myself defined by the person I’m with,” she said. “I never saw myself defined as one particular thing or not. So, I watched as I quickly became not actress Amber Heard, but out lesbian Amber Heard.” She continued, “It did impact my career, it was difficult. It was not easy. I was the only one working in this way, so it was definitely difficult because no one had done it. I did that even though everyone told me it would end my career, without a doubt.” Heard also revealed that several directors questioned if she could play a straight woman in a “romantic lead” role after she came out. “I rolled my eyes at that. And I said, ‘Watch me do it,’ ” she said. “And I did it.”
With the public relationships she’s bene in, it’s understandable why there’s so much interest in who Amber Heard is dating and what her past relationships have been with. Read on for what we know about Amber Heard’s dating history and how her defamation case with Johnny Depp affected her relationships.
Bianca Butti (2020 – 2021)
Image: AP Photo/Matt Dunham.
Amber Heard and cinematographer Bianca Butti sparked dating rumors in January 2020 after they were photographed kissing outside a hotel in Palm Springs, California. They later attended the 2020 Women’s March in Los Angeles together and spent Valentine’s Day together in 2021. “Amber is not trying to be low-key about it,” a source told Us Weekly in 2020. “She feels comfortable kissing Bianca and holding her hands in public at this point. They started as friends and it turned into something more.” Butti also attended several court hearings for Johnny Depp’s defamation case against Heard in 2020. Heard and Butti split in 2021 after less than two years together.
Vito Schnabel (2018)
Image: Chaz Niell/Icon Sportswire.
Amber Heard and art dealer Vito Schnabel started dating in May 2018. They split after less than a year of dating that same year. A source told Us Weekly at the time that Schnabel and Heard broke up “because of long distance.” Before his relationship with Heard, Schanebl dated Heidi Klum for three years.
Elon Musk (2016 – 2018)
Image: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Sipa USA.
Amber Heard and Elon Musk started dating in July 2016 after they were first seen together at the Delano South Beach in Miami, Florida. “Elon is attracted to her edginess. She isn’t frightened about being different,” a source told People at the time. “She doesn’t get easily intimidated. She is very focused and loves to learn.” The two split in August 2017 after less than a year of dating. “They had fun for a few months, but are both very busy with work now. It was getting hard to find time to see each other,” an insider told People at the time. adding that Musk initiated the split. “Elon’s is working day and night. This is his life and he loves it. He is in no position to be in a relationship right now and ended it.”
Heard and Musk reunited five months later before ending their relationship a second time in February 2018. “Amber wants her independence and prefers being friends rather than romantically linked,” a source told Us Weekly at the time. Another insider added, “Elon decided it was time to end things, and Amber agreed. They both care for one another, but the timing just isn’t right.”
Texts between Heard and Musk were read aloud at a 2020 court hearing over Heard’s abuse case with ex-husband Johnny Depp, whom she separate from in 2016. In the texts, Heard told Musk that she wanted a restraining order against Depp for an alleged domestic violence incident the day before. Musk responded by offering her “24/7” security. The text continued, ““The offer would stand, even if you never wanted to see me again… anyway, sorry for being an idiot. The radio silence hurts a lot. It only matters because I really like you.”
At another court hearing in 2020, Josh Drew—the ex-husband of Heard’s best friend Raquel “Rocky” Pennington who also lived rent-free in a home owned by Depp—claimed that Heard had a threesome with Musk and Cara Delevingne when she was still married to Depp. “Did she ever tell you in words or substance while Amber was still married to Johnny Depp that the three of them, Amber Heard, Elon Musk and Cara Delevingne spent the night together?’” attorney Benjamin Chew asked, to which Drew responded, “Yes. To the specific date, I can’t say.” Chew continued, “So they were having a three-way affair, correct?” Drew responded, “My understanding, yes.”
Musk denied that he had a threesome with Delevingne and Heard in a statement to Page Six. “Cara and I are friends, but we’ve never been intimate. She would confirm this,” he said. “Also, I wish to confirm again that Amber and I only started going out about a month after her divorce filing. I don’t think I was ever even in the vicinity of Amber during their marriage!” He continued, “Regarding this lawsuit, I would recommend that everyone involved bury the hatchet and move on. Life is too short for such extended negativity. Nobody is going to say, after it’s all over, that they wished the court battle had lasted longer!”
Cara Delevingne (2016)
Image: Laurent Zabulon/Abaca/Sipa USA.
Amber Heard and Cara Delevingne dated in 2016 soon after Heard’s divorce from Johnny Depp. The two were first linked by The Sun in 2016 after they were photographed in London together while filming their 2018 movie, London Fields. “They have been seen at the hotel loads and are always very giggly and thick as thieves, out until the early hours,” a source told the newspaper at the time. Though Heard and Delevingne never confirmed their relationship, they were photographed together several times, including once in December 2016 while leaving a party hosted by Rihanna.
A source told The Daily Mail in 2020 that Heard’s ex-husband, Johnny Depp, hasn’t “ruled out” serving Delevingne in his defamation case against Heard. “Cara could also be compelled to give evidence – by either party,” the source said. “It’s definitely a possibility. Almost anything can happen in this case.” During a court hearing in 2020, Heard’s former friend, Josh Drew (who was previously married to her best friend Raquel “Rocky” Pennington), claimed that his ex-wife told him that Heard and Delevingne had an affair while she was still married to Depp. “Did Rocky tell you Amber Heard was having an affair with Cara Delevingne while she was still married to Johnny Depp?” attorney Benjamin Chew asked, to which Drew responded, “Yes.”
Johnny Depp (2011 – 2016)
Image: Diego Corredor/MediaPunch /IPX.
Amber Heard and Johnny Depp met in 2009 while filming their 2011 movie, The Rum Diary. “That moment, was, it was, it felt like something, it felt like something I should not be feeling,” Depp recalled of a shower kissing scene between him and Heard at a court hearing in 2022. “I think there was something in the kiss in the shower that was real.” The two reunited at the promotional tour for The Rum Diary in 2011. Depp and Heard started dating after his 2012 breakup with Vanessa Paradis. They got engaged in 2014. “Of course they couldn’t be happier to be engaged and excited to share the rest of their lives together,” a source told People at the time. “Amber has really taken well to the kids and really enjoys spending time with them. And she’s even taken Lily shopping on her own for some bonding time.”
The two married in 2015. After 15 months of marriage, Heard filed for divorce in 2016. She obtained a temporary restraining order against Depp, claiming that he abused her while under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Depp denied the accusations, and a $7 million settlement was reached out of court in August 2016. Heard pledged to donate the money to the ACLU and the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. “Our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love. Neither party has made false accusations for financial gain. There was never any intent of physical or emotional harm,” the two aid in a joint statement at the time.
In 2018, Heard wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post about her experience with domestic abuse. While she didn’t mention Depp by name, many believed that the post was about her ex-husband. Depp sued Heard for defamation in 2019, claiming that the op-ed cost him acting jobs, including his role in Walt Disney Pictures’ Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. The trial for the case started in 2022.
Tasya Van Ree (2008 – 2011)
Image: Alex J. Berliner/ABImages.
Amber Heard and artist and photographer Tasya Van Ree dated from 2008 to 2012. Heard was dating Ree when she publicly came out as bisexual at GLAAD’s 25th anniversary event in 2010. “I don’t label myself one way or another—I have had successful relationships with men and now a woman. I love who I love; it’s the person that matters,” she said. “I think when I became aware of my role in the media, I had to ask myself an important question ‘Am I part of the problem?’ And I think that when millions and millions of hard-working, taxpaying Americans are denied their rights and denied their equality you have to ask yourself what are the factors that are an epidemic problem and that’s what this is.”
According to TMZ, Heard was arrested on September 14, 2009, after she allegedly grabbed and hit Ree in the arm while at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Heard was taken into custody, booked for misdemeanor domestic violence and appeared in court the next day. Because both Heard and Ree lived in California at the time, the prosecutor didn’t move forward with the case. News of Heard’s arrest resurfaced in 2016 after her domestic violence allegation against her ex-husband, Johnny Depp. Ree issued a statement at the time, claiming that the physical altercation between her and Heard was “misinterpreted.” “In 2009, Amber was wrongfully accused for an incident that was misinterpreted and over-sensationalized by two individuals in a powerful position,” her statement read. “I recount hints of misogynistic attitudes toward us which alter appeared to be homophobic when they found out we were domestic partners and not just ‘friends.’ Charges were quickly dropped and she was released moments later.”
She continued, “It’s disheartening that Amber’s integrity and story are being questioned yet again. Amber is a brilliant, honest and beautiful woman and I have the utmost respect for her. We shared 5 wonderful years together and remain close to this day.”
According to Page Six, Depp once vandalized painting given to Heard by Ree in 2014 by changing Ree’s surname on the piece of art to “van PEE.” A photo of the vandalization was shown at a court hearing in 2020. The court alleged that DEpp sent a photo of the vandalizzed painting to his then-girlfriend’s sister, Whitney Henriquez, who responded, “Well done, my friend, well done. The van Pee painting earns you 20 points in my book.” Depp responded, “Can’t stand that f–king hovering vulture.”
At the court hearing, Heard claimed that Depp accused her of having an affair with van Ree during a fight in 2013. “He wanted me to admit that I was having an affair with, not only Tasya van Ree, my ex-partner, but also a gentleman I hardly knew,” Heard said. “He had just gotten it in his mind that I had these affairs and he wouldn’t leave until I admitted it.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE (7233) for confidential support.
