Johnny Depp Collected

French fashion house Dior refuses to drop Johnny Depp after his loss in wife-beating libel case

Johnny Depp was asked to step down from the Fantastic Beasts Franchise after UK court had ruled against the 57-year-old actor in a libel case he had filed against British tabloid The Sun for calling him a ‘wife beater.’

“I have found that the great majority of alleged assaults of Ms Heard by Mr Depp have been proved to the civil standard,” said Judge Andrew Nicol, accepting 12 accounts of Amber Heard’s allegations against Depp.

Industry insiders have speculated afterwards that Johnny Depp’s career is over, calling the loss at court the final nail in the coffin and him ‘a tainted brand.’

Despite the allegations against Depp and the controversy surrounding his brand name, French fashion house Dior is taking a stance in support of the Pirates of the Caribbean star.

Dior went ahead and aired a commercial for its Sauvage cologne featuring Depp during an episode of UK show The Great British Bake Off on November 24, eliciting disapproval from viewers, according to The Guardian.

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A spokesperson from Advertising Standards Authority said, “We have received a total of 11 complaints about this ad. With the complainants believing that Johnny Depp shouldn’t be in the ad due to details concerning his recent court case.”

Fans of the actor were however happy that Dior was on their side.

“Johnny Depp is still the face of Sauvage, because Dior aren’t idiots,” one tweeted.

 “The ruling is setting a terrible precedent for male victims of domestic abuse. If Johnny Depp isn’t taken seriously in court despite masses of evidence against Heard and multiple personal testimonies what chance does your average man stand?” another wrote.

A  PR expert named Mark Bokowski, who worked for Michael Jackson and American Express however told The Guardian, “I think it would be sensible for Dior to sever links with Depp.”

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Depp, who enjoys greater stardom than Heard and is one the biggest actors from the 2000s, had received support from his co-stars and colleagues, including Henela Bonham Carter, JK Rowling, Vanessa Paradis and Javier Bardem throughout the legal battle.

During the trial, fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean actor would stand outside the Royal Courts of Justice every day to show support while Heard had to resort to a police escort in the face of anonymous death threats.

In the wake of the UK ruling, Depp’s army of fans remained loyal and called him a victim of domestic assault.