Who is Dr Alan Blaustein? Johnny Depp’s therapist says actor compared Amber Heard to abusive MOM!
Johnny Depp’s former psychiatrist testified on Thursday, May 19, that the actor expressed “frustration” with Amber Heard during their marriage. Depp allegedly compared Heard with his abusive mom and called her a 'pain in the a**." In a deposition, Dr Alan Blaustein said that Depp struggles to stay sober as his relationship with Heard began falling apart. “He used drugs to cope with psychic wounds,” Blaustein said in a recording of his testimony played in court.
Blaustein said that Depp's use of the ADHD medication Adderall concerned him. He also recalled instances in which Depp failed to keep his promises to stay clean. Depp allegedly told Heard in a message sent to the doctor, "You’re being my mother and psychotic sister." The 'Pirates of the Caribbean' star had earlier testified that he was physically and psychologically abused by his mother, Betty Sue Palmer, as he was growing up.
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Blaustein was deposed in January 2022. The doctor said that Depp felt 'frustration, impatience and anger' with Heard at the time when they were married. "It was a very chaotic relationship, with a lot of fluctuation, ups and downs and lots of difficulty in emotional expressions -- and lots of anger in both places. You know, high intensity affects in emotional expression." Blaustein claimed that Depp had issues with marijuana, alcohol and opiates. He also alleged that Depp suffered from anxiety and claimed that Depp turned to drugs to combat psychological issues he was facing. The psychiatrist claimed the drug use caused "brain changes" over time and memory loss for the actor.
Blaustein testified that the former couple's relationship started becoming bitter well before their nuptials in February 2015. He recalled that Depp had said he “might not want to go to marriage [at] 51 years old.” “[Their relationship was] a lot of love, a lot of disappointment, a lot of fear,” he said. The doctor, however, also said that despite the couple's relationship issues, he did not recall any violence. "Part of his goal of therapy was to work through the anger that he and his fiancée had toward each other," he added.
Depp's former psychiatrist also testified that the actor expressed feelings of "paranoia, fear, envy" and about "fighting the devil" which the doctor said, "was a representation of the battle he had many days when we woke up with depression and anxiety and fears that he had."
Blaustein was one of the many witnesses the jury heard from May 19. For instance, actress Ellen Barkin testified that her ex-flame Depp, who was often drunk, once threw a wine bottle at her. “He was drunk a lot of the time,” Barkin said about Depp in a recorded deposition played for the jury. “He was a red wine drinker.”
Barkin, 68, reportedly had a fling with Depp while filming 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' in the 1990s. The actress narrated an incident where Depp allegedly chucked a bottle of wine toward her while fighting with others in a Sin City hotel room. “I don’t know why he threw the bottle,” Ellen testified. “It was more like a toss.” Barkin could not remember whether the bottle was full or empty, and said that it did not hit anyone. She could not remember who else was present. Barkin initially said that she had a “romantic” relationship with Depp in the 1990s. Later, however, she changed her mind and asked the lawyer deposing her, "Can you change that to sexual?” Barkin, who described Depp as a “jealous man” and “controlling", said that the two slept together about three to four times a week for five months in 1994.
Depp and Heard began dating after meeting on the set of the 2011 film 'The Rum Diary'. They got married in Los Angeles in February 2015. In 2016, Heard obtained a restraining order against Depp, accusing him of abuse. Depp, however, denied the claims, saying that her accusations were a "choreographed hoax”. In 2019, the two settled their divorce out of court. At the time, Heard said she had donated her $7m (£5.5m) settlement to charity. Depp later accused her of lying about it.