The Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial was a pop culture obsession. Saudi trolls may have had a hand in that

As far as celebrity court battles go, the six-week legal row in 2022 between Hollywood superstar Johnny Depp and his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard, was a pop culture juggernaut reminiscent of the O.J. Simpson murder trial in the 1990s. 

The trial, held in a Virginia courtroom, centred on duelling defamation claims from both parties, stemming from allegations of domestic abuse in their relationship. (You can read about the complicated case and its outcome here.)

Like the Simpson trial, when the former NFL star was acquitted of the 1994 murders of his ex-wife and her friend, Depp v. Heard offered fodder for cable news channels