Amber Heard's Dating History: From Johnny Depp to Elon Musk

After her divorce from ex Johnny Depp and their subsequent legal battle, Amber Heard was most recently linked to filmmaker Bianca Butti

Amber Heard has kept her dating life out of the public eye following a tumultuous few years of legal battles with her ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Since rising to fame, the Aquaman star has often made headlines for her romantic relationships. In 2010, Heard came out as bisexual while in a relationship with photographer Tasya van Ree.

Coming out "did impact my career, it was difficult. It was not easy," Heard said at The Economist‘s Pride & Prejudice Summit in 2017. "I did that even though everyone told me it would end my career, without a doubt."

Although her relationship with van Ree didn't last, she once again found herself making headlines when she began dating Depp. The pair went on to marry, but their tumultuous relationship began to fray. After 15 months of marriage, they filed for divorce. She filed for a domestic violence restraining order against Depp while he adamantly denied the allegations.

Heard went on to write an op-ed for the Washington Post in 2018 about her experience coming forward publicly with allegations of assault. Although she didn't mention Depp by name, it marked the beginning of a lengthy legal battle for the former couple. Over the next few years, Heard and Depp went to court over multiple claims of defamation. In 2022, a seven-person jury in the U.S. ruled largely in favor of Depp.

Now, Heard is focusing on the future and her young daughter, Oonagh, whom she welcomed as a single mom. Sources told PEOPLE that the mother and daughter are now living in Europe, where she "is able to just be a mom."

"She is focused on raising her daughter," the source shared. "She spends every day with her girl. They stroll around, visit parks and enjoy family time. Amber is a great mom."

Here's a look back at Amber Heard's dating history.

Tasya van Ree

In 2008, Heard began dating photographer Tasya van Ree. The couple kept the first two years of their relationship mostly under wraps; it wasn't until 2010 that they began appearing at public events as a pair. In February of that year, they attended their first event together as Heard hosted a charity art exhibition featuring van Ree's photos.

In December 2010, Heard publicly came out as bisexual during GLAAD's 25th Anniversary party — although she said she was never actively hiding her sexuality. She spoke to AfterEllen.com at the event as an "out actress" for the first time and opened up about her relationship with van Ree.

"She's so beautiful," Heard said. "I mean, you'd have to be crazy not to want to go out with her!"

The pair dated for several more years, during which van Ree reportedly gifted Heard with her dog Pistol. The relationship was serious enough that Heard legally changed her last name to van Ree — although they were unable to tie the knot as same-sex marriage was not yet legal across the U.S. However, the couple called it quits in 2012, and Heard restored her name.

Despite the pair going their separate ways, their relationship made headlines years later when news surfaced that Heard had been arrested in 2009 for domestic violence against van Ree. Heard allegedly grabbed and struck van Ree's arm in an altercation at a Seattle airport. The prosecutor declined to file charges, and in 2016 van Ree said the situation was "over-sensationalized."

"In 2009, Amber was wrongfully accused for an incident that was misinterpreted and over-sensationalized by two individuals in a power position," van Ree said in a statement. "It's disheartening that Amber's integrity and story are being questioned yet again. Amber is a brilliant, honest and beautiful woman and I have the utmost respect for her. We shared 5 wonderful years together and remain close to this day."

Since then, Heard and van Ree have remained friendly and were even spotted spending time together in 2018, per the Daily Mail.

Johnny Depp

Heard was first introduced to Depp while they were both working on The Rum Diary in 2009. At the time, Heard was still dating van Ree and Depp was in a relationship with Vanessa Paradis. Although Heard and Depp's relationship was platonic during filming, Depp admitted in court that he began to feel something he "should not be feeling" toward Heard while on set. When filming wrapped, Depp said Heard remained in his head and in 2011, they reconnected during the film's press tour.

"We connect on a lot of levels but the first things that really got me was she's an aficionado of the blues," Depp said in 2015. "She's very, very literate. She's a voracious reader as I have been, so we connected on that as well, and she's kind of brilliant and beautiful."

After the press tour wrapped, Heard and Depp began a private relationship, as Depp had not publicly announced his split from Paradis. Looking back, Heard said the early days of their romance "felt like a dream," and she felt as though Depp saw her "in a way no one else had." They kept their relationship under wraps for quite some time, and it wasn't until 2013 that they were photographed holding hands.

Less than a year later, Depp proposed to Heard at a London hotel — even though he didn't have a ring. A source confirmed their engagement in January 2014, telling PEOPLE that the couple "couldn't be happier to be engaged." Heard and Depp tied the knot in a civil ceremony at their Los Angeles home in February 2015. Then, just a few days later, they hosted a second ceremony on Depp's private island in the Bahamas.

The couple's marriage was short-lived, and 15 months after their wedding, Heard filed for divorce in May 2016. Less than a week later, she accused Depp of domestic abuse and sought a domestic violence restraining order against the actor. In court paperwork, Heard recalled violent altercations, including an incident where Depp allegedly threw a cell phone at her face. Depp denied the claims and a spokesman for the LAPD told PEOPLE that officers on the scene at the time saw "no evidence of any crime." In August 2016, the exes reached a $7 million divorce settlement outside of court and the domestic violence case against Depp was dismissed.

In a joint statement to PEOPLE at the time, Heard and Depp called their relationship "intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love." They added that neither party had "made false accusations for financial gain" and there was no intent of "physical or emotional harm."

While the pair went their separate ways, it wasn't the end of the drama between them. Two years after their split, Heard wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post, in which she discussed her experience as a woman coming forward with domestic violence allegations. Heard said that she "felt the full force of our culture's wrath for women who speak out" against domestic violence. She added that she allegedly lost numerous career opportunities and even faced death threats. While she didn't specify Depp by name, it became the start of a lengthy legal battle between the former couple.

Also in 2018, The Sun wrote about Heard's op-ed and described Depp as a "wife beater." Depp sued the publication for libel. The pair each testified in court in the U.K. in July 2020; based on their testimony, a judge ruled against Depp, finding that The Sun's article was "substantially true."

Following the publication of Heard's op-ed, Depp filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit in the U.S. against her in March 2019. Depp's team called Heard's allegations of domestic violence against Depp a "hoax" and "categorically and demonstrably false." In August 2020, Heard filed a $100 million countersuit, accusing Depp of initiating a "defamatory smear campaign" against her in "an attempt to ruin her life and career."

Depp's defamation trial against Heard began in April 2022 and both actors took to the stand to testify. Depp maintained that he did not abuse Heard and alleged that Heard mangled his finger by throwing a vodka bottle at him. Meanwhile, a doctor hired by his team testified that he believed Heard showed signs of multiple personality disorders.

Heard's legal team emphasized that Heard was expressing her right to free speech and that she was not guilty of libel because her statements were based in truth. She later took the stand herself, claiming that Depp was first violent with her when he allegedly slapped her across the face for laughing at his "wino" tattoo. She went on to accuse Depp of sexually assaulting her on multiple occasions, including shocking allegations that he performed a "cavity search" while looking for misplaced drugs and assaulted her using a liquor bottle.

In June 2022, a seven-person jury reached a verdict in the trial, deciding that Heard had defamed Depp in her 2018 op-ed. Depp was awarded $15 million in damages, although Virginia law caps punitive damages at $10.35 million. In Heard's countersuit, she won one of three defamation counts and was awarded $2 million in damages. Depp later filed an appeal to overturn the countersuit's decision. In December 2022, Heard announced she was settling the case — not as an "act of concession," she wrote, but as a way of leaving behind what she called a legal system that was "unable to protect" her or her right to free speech.

Elon Musk

While Heard was still dating Depp, she appeared in the movie Machete Kills, which featured a cameo from Elon Musk, although she never met the Tesla founder on set. After filming wrapped, Musk reached out to the movie's director Robert Rodriguez to arrange a dinner with Heard, and, despite a meeting being scheduled, she never showed up.

After the failed connection, it would be several years before the pair would formally meet, though exactly when Heard and Musk crossed paths again is unclear. Heard said in court that she didn't become friendly with the tech mogul until the 2016 Met Gala (at which Heard alleged Depp "stood [her] up"), while Depp claimed in court papers in his 2022 defamation trial against the actress that Heard and Musk began seeing each other secretly in 2015.

"He seemed like a real gentleman," Heard said of Musk during her 2022 defamation trial against Depp. "He was really nice. He sat at a nearby table and we got to speaking that night and eventually became friends."

Heard filed for divorce from Depp just a few weeks after the May 2016 event, and by that July, she and Musk had become the subject of romance rumors. Although sources told PEOPLE the duo were simply friends, their relationship eventually grew into something more. The couple made things Instagram official during an April 2017 trip to Australia; insiders shared that they were "very serious about each other" just a few weeks later.

In August 2017, however, they went their separate ways. Insiders close to the pair told PEOPLE that Musk had initiated the split due to their busy schedules. Despite the breakup, things remained amicable between them. Musk even left a comment on Heard's Instagram, telling followers that they were still friends and planned to "remain close and love one another." After being spotted together again just days later, the pair released an official statement about their split.

"People occasionally send out speculation, which has no basis in fact, without our knowledge, believing that they have our best interests in mind. Sometimes, other agendas are at work. It can get a little weird ... However, we would like to state directly that we have the utmost respect for one another, and it would be troubling if anyone had the impression that we thought otherwise," they wrote. "The reality is that this is just a normal relationship with a giant magnifying glass applied."

Several months after their split, Heard and Musk were spotted sharing a kiss in an L.A. restaurant. Despite the PDA, sources said the pair were just "friendly." Then, just days later, Heard was seen vacationing with Musk in Chile. By January 2018, it seemed that their romance was fully back on. Their rekindled relationship was short-lived, though, as the pair broke up for the second time that February.

Later reflecting on their connection, Heard said that she had a "beautiful relationship" with Musk and was continuing to have a "beautiful friendship" with him. She added that the pair had bonded over "intellectual curiosity, ideas and conversation, [and] a shared love for science."

"We just bonded on a lot of things that speak to who I am on the inside," Heard told The Hollywood Reporter. "I have so much respect for him."

Vito Schnabel

Heard was first linked to art dealer Vito Schnabel in May 2018, just a few months after her split with Musk. The couple were spotted having breakfast together at Italian restaurant Sant Ambroeus in New York City, and over the next few months, they made several low-key appearances around the city.

The duo went public with their relationship in July of that year, attending a tennis match at Wimbledon in London. Heard and Schnabel were seen holding hands as they made their way to the grass courts.

The relatively private couple continued to date over the next year, taking a New Year's trip to Switzerland and making several outings in L.A. The pair ultimately called it quits in early 2019, which was confirmed when they were both spotted out with other people.

Andrés Muschietti

In March 2019, Heard was seen kissing Argentinian director Andrés Muschietti. Over the course of the next few weeks, the couple were spotted spending lots of time together. Later that month, they were photographed while holding party supplies as they headed to a friend's home. Then in early April, the pair were spotted spending time together in L.A. as they grabbed coffee and went to a movie.

It's unclear exactly what happened between the two, but it appears the relationship eventually fizzled out.

Bianca Butti

Heard sparked dating rumors with filmmaker Bianca Butti in January 2020 when they were spotted kissing during a Palm Springs getaway. Though the couple didn't confirm their romance, they were spotted together again in March as they went grocery shopping and took a trip to buy plants. The pair even appeared to be spending the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic quarantining together.

Later that year, Butti stuck by Heard's side in London as she spent time in court amid her legal battle with Depp, per the Daily Mail. Although there were rumors that the pair had split sometime in 2021 after Heard welcomed her daughter, Oonagh Paige, they were spotted together again on a trip to Mallorca, Spain, in October 2022.

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