Amber Heard has switched to a new PR team ahead of her testimony this week amid her ongoing defamation trial against ex-husband Johnny Depp, ET Canada can confirm.
According to the New York Post, Heard has been upset over the coverage she’s been getting, so was said to have fired the crisis PR firm Precision Strategies on Thursday.
She’s now working with consulting firm Shane Communications on retainer to help save her image in the court of public opinion, sources say.
“She doesn’t like bad headlines,” a source told the publication.
Another insider said Heard was “frustrated with her story not being told effectively.”
The fired PR firm was co-founded by Stephanie Cutter, who served as an adviser to President Barack Obama during his first presidential term, and was deputy campaign manager for his 2012 re-election campaign.
One crisis communications expert that ET spoke with said of the last minute change: “For the last several weeks, Depp’s team has presented witnesses to challenge Heard’s mental health as well as audio tapes of her saying she hit him so there’s no way the media wouldn’t give her some bad headlines.
“With the defense getting ready to present its side of the story, it feels like an extremely impulsive and unforced error to switch media teams at a moment when they should be going on offence.”
Depp is suing Heard for $50 million following a December 2018 op-ed in the Washington Post in which she seemingly accused him of domestic abuse, despite not naming him. She has now countersued the actor for $100 million.
According to NBC News, Heard’s team are expected to take the stand Tuesday after Depp’s side wrap up. Heard is expected to testify on Wednesday.
The trial is expected to take six weeks. Depp continues to deny he abused Heard.
ET Canada has contacted Heard’s rep for comment.
