Johnny Depp Commercial During UK’s ‘Great British Bake Off’ Finale Draws Complaints

Actor lost a libel suit against The Sun earlier this month over “wife beater” accusations

johnny depp signs with CAA
Getty Images

Fans of the hit U.K. show “The Great British Bake Off” were surprised during this week’s finale to see a cologne commercial featuring Johnny Depp, just weeks after he lost a libel case in which a judge ruled that “wife beater” accusations by his ex, Amber Heard, were “substantially true.”

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

Depp has been the face of Sauvage, a fragrance from Dior, since 2015.

While some may have complained, Depp isn’t without his share of loyal fans — many of whom have voiced their support for the former “Fantastic Beasts” star, especially when it comes to the Dior commercial.

“The fact that the Johnny Depp Sauvage ad is still being played makes me so happy,” one fan wrote. Another added, “Well done @Dior for not dropping Johnny Depp for your #Sauvage scent. About time he got some kind of public support.”

Another summed it up directly by tweeting: “The way to support Johnny Depp is to keep streaming, buying his movies. Also buy SAUVAGE & keep it best seller. #JusticeForJohnnyDepp.”

A judge ruled against Depp back on Nov. 2, and earlier this week, the actor was hit with another loss when he was ordered to pay $845,450 in legal costs to The Sun.

Depp had sued The Sun for libel over an August 2018 story that called the star a “wife-beater” in his relationship with now ex-wife Amber Heard. Earlier this month, Justice Andrew Nicol said that News Group Newspapers and Sun executive editor Dan Wootton had proved that the tabloid’s story was “substantially true.” His ruling concluded, “I have found that the great majority of alleged assaults of Ms. Heard by Mr. Depp have been proved to the civil standard.”

Following the judge’s decision, Depp was forced to quit Warner Bros.’ “Fantastic Beasts 3.” Mads Mikkelsen has been announced as his replacement.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.