Amber Heard's first major public appearance since Johnny Depp defamation trial turns heads

Amber Heard's presence at the Taormina Film Festival has caught the eye of social media. The actress is in Italy for the premiere of her film In the Fire in which she plays an American psychiatrist who travels to Columbia in the 1890s to treat a disturbed boy and gets entangled in a battle between science and religion when the local priest claims that the boy is possessed by the devil. This is Heard's first major public appearance since the infamous defamation trial she was embroiled in with former husband Johnny Depp, which she lost.

However, the glimpses from the film festival in Italy show no signs of her carrying the remnants of that extremely high-profile affair. Reports reveal that she was spotted walking about the picturesque Sicilian town with the film team and was even seen interacting with fans at the festival at her sprightly best. The Rum Diary actress also signed autographs but kept her interaction with the press quite limited, steering clear of a press conference for the premiere of her film.

Pictures and video snippets from her blue carpet photo call ahead of the premiere, in which she is seen wearing an elegant black number, are now circulating on social media. Conor Allyn, director of In the Fire, and co-star Eduardo Noriega also attended the premiere with Heard.

Amber Heard's appearance comes exactly a year after her loss to Johnny Depp in the 'Depp v. Heard' trial that took place between April 11 and June 1, 2022. Having been found liable in all three matters of defamation raised by Johnny Depp, the actress was ordered to pay $10 million as compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages (reduced to $350,000 eventually). Since then, Heard has stepped away from the limelight and moved to Spain in an attempt to quietly rebuild her life.