The Real “Winner” in the Depp v. Heard Trial in our Opinion? The Apple Watch.

The world has been, for better or worse, transfixed on the high-profile, defamation trial between veteran American actor Johnny (Captain Jack Sparrow-turned-Willy Wonka) Depp and his ex-wife, actor Amber Heard. So much so, there have been countless social media pages created just to cover snippets of said trail as well as to share memes of the two actors in all of their glory. One thing we noticed, however, was what – if anything – was on their wrists and the wrists of those in the courtroom or on the stand, and there did seem to be one watch that ruled them all: The Apple Watch.

While in the past, Johnny Depp has been photographed wearing everything from a Corum Bubble “Mexican Skull” to a Cartier Ballon Bleu to various lesser known or vintage pieces, for the trial, he opted to go sans timepiece, donning instead, layered bracelets on his wrists and a plethora of his trademark statement rings. Amber Heard, however, went the Apple Smartwatch route, which is a curious choice considering she’d get roasted by the media and the general public if/when the cameras caught her checking her texts, emails, or how many steps it was from the bench to the stand. 

But Ms. Heard’s wasn’t the only watch in the courtroom. Analog timepieces did show up on the wrists of Depp’s phycologist, Dr. Shannon Curry (a Cartier Tank, perhaps?), as well as forensic accountant Michael Spindler, (hard to tell which watch he was wearing). And while the wrists of virtual witnesses such as model Kate Moss, actor Ellen Barkin, and Disney executive Tina Newman were mostly unseen during their testimony, there were certain wrists that were out in full force, and all were wearing – you guessed it – the Apple watch. 

Aside from Heard, the most notable Apple watch-wearer was likely Judge Penny Azcate, who social media is praising as a goddess for not only handling the court, the attorneys, and the witnesses with fairness and professionalism, but also for allowing cameras into the courtroom, because, without the cameras, we’d have no memes, right? Judge Azcate’s wrists were often exposed during statements or explanations to witnesses and it was clear she’s a fan of her smartwatch.

Also adorning Apple watches were New York-based hand surgeon Dr. Richard Gilbert (who discussed his take on the “cut finger” incident) and Heard’s lawyer, Elaine Bredehoff (maybe because she wanted to check Snopes daily to see if what Depp said was actually true).

Regardless of why these courtroom personalities opted to go the smartwatch route (though, after some of the testimonies, some of these folks are going to need something more that watches to feel smart in the future), there was the feeling that wearing a flashy, Swiss timepiece could have swayed public opinion. Had Depp sat in his chair with the Tiffany PP Nautilus on his wrist, the public might have looked at him as a spoiled Hollywood elitist rather than the defamed actor/husband he wanted the jury to believe him to be. His move to not wear a watch – whether intentional or not – was quite brilliant, because at the end of the day, no matter what our personal beliefs or whose side we feel we were on as a society, the best actor did their job, sold their performance, and won their case. 

Only time (smart, or not) will tell, however, if that “win” will last well into the future.