Barresi, a private investigator, was hired by Heard, 38, to dig up dirt on her ex-husband. What he found included Depp’s mother Betty Sue’s depression, mania and suicide attempt, as well as his father Johnny Depp Sr.’s drunkenness, problems finding work and arguments with other women.
Depp, 61, dramatically testified about his parents in his defamation case against Heard, but Barresi claimed the actor misrepresented the facts by ultimately winning the case and getting more than $10 million.
In his book, Barresi noted: “Johnny’s harrowing testimony highlighted Betty Sue’s aggressive, volatile and malicious nature, drawing parallels to Amber. Conversely, his portrayal of his father as the abused husband and victim resonated with the jury, suggesting similarities with Johnny himself. However, what I discovered was in stark contrast to the courtroom story.”