Amber Heard's high-profile defamation trial with her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, has brought with it an increased curiosity in her relationship with Elon Musk.
While it had been noted that the Aquaman actress, 36, had dated the Tesla and SpaceX CEO, 50, in the past, Heard's court case and Musk's purchase of Twitter have, respectively, made them the focus of countless headlines in recent weeks.
Heard is currently battling a $50 million lawsuit from Depp, 58, who has accused her of defaming him in an op-ed published by The Washington Post in 2018, in which she said she was a victim of domestic abuse.
While Heard didn't name Depp in the article, his lawyers have argued that it was obvious she was referring to the actor. Heard has counter-sued for $100 million for nuisance, with her attorneys arguing that the op-ed was a matter of public interest.
Musk, meanwhile, has made headlines for his $44 billion Twitter buyout, with his statements on free speech igniting expectations that he will reinstate the accounts of a number of suspended public figures, including former President Donald Trump.
The billionaire was also expected to testify at Heard's ongoing trial, which is taking place in Fairfax, Virginia. However, it was last week revealed that he will not be taking the stand, in person or virtually.
And while the it means that observers of the trial will be denied the opportunity to hear Musk wax lyrical about his romance with Heard, Newsweek has put together a timeline of their relationship.
2012: The Fateful Meeting
Years before they would go on to be romantically linked, Musk and Heard met over the summer of 2012 as they worked on the set of their Robert Rodriguez-directed movie Machete Kills.
In the movie, which was released in 2013, Heard played "Miss San Antonio" Blanca Vasquez, while unlikely movie star Musk appeared in a cameo role as himself.
The extent of the pair's interaction on the set is unknown, but neither would have been spoiled for choice when it came to rubbing shoulders with other celebrities, as the cast included an exhaustive list of famous faces.
Among the film's stars were Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez, Antonio Banderas, Jessica Alba, Mel Gibson, Vanessa Hudgens, Cuba Gooding Jr., Sofía Vergara and Lady Gaga.
2016: Romance Blossoms
Musk's divorce from actress Talulah Riley was finalized in 2016. Heard filed for divorce from Depp in the same year, with their union being officially dissolved at the start of 2017.
Exactly when Musk and Heard started dating has been disputed, with Depp claiming in a lawsuit, per People, that his then-wife had an affair with the entrepreneur "no later than one month after" they had tied the knot in 2015.
However, a spokesperson for Musk insisted: "Elon and Amber didn't start seeing each other until May 2016, and even then it was infrequent. Their relationship didn't become romantic until some time later."
In April 2017, Heard and Musk were photographed stepping out together as a couple for the first time as they visited the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on Australia's Gold Coast. Heard made things Instagram official that day, per People.
2017: Heartbreak Hits
In August 2017 the pair announced in a joint-statement shared with People that they had gone their separate ways.
"The distance has been really tough on our relationship, because we haven't been able to see each other much," they said in their statement.
Stating that sometimes "other agendas are at work," and that things "can get a little weird," they added that they have "the utmost respect for one another, and it would be troubling if anyone had the impression that we thought otherwise."
Musk further stated on Twitter, according to PageSix: "Long-distance relationships when both partners have intense work obligations are always difficult, but who knows what the future holds."
In an interview with author and Rolling Stone writer Neil Strauss, Musk let his true feelings be known, as he said: "I just broke up with my girlfriend. I was really in love, and it hurt bad… Well, she broke up with me more than I broke up with her, I think."
The split was made public several days after Musk had attended a Tesla Model 3 launch event in July.
"I've been in severe emotional pain for the last few weeks," Musk said. "Severe. It took every ounce of will to be able to do the Model 3 event and not look like the most depressed guy around.
"For most of that day, I was morbid. And then I had to psych myself up: drink a couple of Red Bulls, hang out with positive people and then, like, tell myself: 'I have all these people depending on me. All right, do it!'"
2017: A Romance Rekindled
As 2017 came to a close, love was in the air once more for the pair, as they vacationed together in Chile and Easter Island, according to PageSix.
By January of 2018, they were seen stepping out arm-in-arm once again as they enjoyed romantic meals in Los Angeles.
However, the relationship came to an end once again in February 2018, with the pair splitting for good.
2020: Just the Two of Us
Musk spoke out about his relationship with Heard in 2020, amid reports that he and the actress had had a "three-way affair" involving model Cara Delevingne.
He told PageSix at the time: "Cara and I are friends—but we've never been intimate. She would confirm this."
Reiterating a previous point, he added: "Also, I wish to confirm again that Amber and I only started going out about a month after her divorce filing [from Depp]. I don't think I was ever even in the vicinity of Amber during their marriage!"
The businessman also weighed in on the 2020 court case that Heard and Depp were locked in at the time, stating that he "would recommend that everyone involved bury the hatchet and move on. Life is too short for such extended negativity.
"Nobody is going to say after it's all over that they wished the court battle had lasted longer!"
Musk was referring to the 2020 libel case that Depp lost against British tabloid The Sun, which had labeled the actor a "wife-beater" in reference to Heard's allegations of domestic abuse during their divorce proceedings in 2016.
While Depp had repeatedly denied ever having been violent to Heard at the three-week trial in London, a judge found that The Sun's claims that the Kentucky-born actor had been abusive to Heard were "substantially true."
2022: Revealing Text Messages
During last week's trial in Fairfax, Musk's relationship with Heard was placed under an uncomfortable spotlight, when text messages the actress had shared about him were read out in court.
Depp's former talent agent Christian Carino—who also happens to be Lady Gaga's former fiancé—shared details of the 2017 messages with the courthouse.
In the texts, Heard shared that she was sad while going through a breakup and hated when things "went public." Carino believes she was referring to Musk.
"You told me a thousand times you were just filling space," Carino texted Heard about Musk in 2017. "You weren't in love with him."
"I'm saying, why would you be sad if you weren't in love with him to begin with?" Carino continued.
Heard responded: "I know, but I wanted time to grieve and recover in my own time."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Ryan Smith is a Newsweek Senior Pop Culture and Entertainment Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more
