The “It Couple” of the moment. Johnny Depp and Kate Moss dated for several years in the ‘90s, over a decade before the Pirates of the Caribbean actor became embroiled in an ongoing legal battle with his ex-wife, Amber Heard.
Celebrity Columnist George Wayne claimed to have introduced the pair at New York’s Cafe Tabac in 1994. “Johnny was in the back having dinner and Kate walked in with Naomi [Campbell] and The GW [George Wayne] grabbed her and made the introduction,” the writer wrote via Instagram in 2019. “I had no idea that they would then become the IT couple for seasons to come, destroying hotel rooms across the globe during their still unforgettable union!”
The same year they met, Depp was arrested for trashing a room at the Mark Hotel in New York City. Police reportedly found Moss and the Edward Scissorhands actor sitting amid the wreckage when they arrived at the scene. Depp admitted to the incident in 2020 while testifying in his libel lawsuit against The Sun. “I actually told the security guard when he came to my room that I was more than willing to pay for everything I had broken,” the 21 Jump Street alum said at the time.
Although relatively short-lived, Depp and Moss’ relationship had a lasting effect on both of them. In a 2012 interview with Vanity Fair, the British model revealed that she’d endured “years and years of crying” after breaking up with the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas actor.
“There’s nobody that’s ever really been able to take care of me. Johnny did for a bit. I believed what he said. Like if I said, ‘What do I do?,’ he’d tell me,” she told the outlet. The London native continued on to say that after the breakup, “I really lost that gauge of [having] somebody I could trust. [It was a] nightmare.”
Depp talked to Hello! Magazine about the relationship in 1998 and took responsibility for the split.
“I have never got that emotional over a woman before. I have been so stupid because we had so much going for our relationship. I’m the one who has to take responsibility for what happened – I was difficult to get on with, I let my work get in the way and I didn’t give her the attention I should have done,” he said at the time.
“The whole thing was crazy because I should never have got so worked up over what people had to say about my work. Sure, I should care about my movies but when I get home, I should try to leave that stuff behind. I couldn’t do that, and I was horrific to live with. Trust me, I’m a total moron sometimes,” he continued.
In 2020, Moss’ name came up during Heard’s testimony in Depp’s libel trial against The Sun. At the time, the Aquaman actress recounted an alleged altercation between the Nightmare on Elm Street actor and her sister, Whitney Henriquez.
“Johnny swings at [Henriquez]. I just see my little sister with her back to the staircase and Johnny swings at her and I don’t even wait … I just in my head instantly think of Kate Moss and the stairs and I swung at him,” she testified.
“I remembered information I had heard [that] he pushed a former girlfriend — I believe it was Kate Moss — down the stairs. I had heard this rumor from two people, and it was fresh in my mind,” Heard continued.
The Rum Diary actress, who was married to Depp from 2015 to 2017, has alleged that the Corpse Bride actor was physically abusive to her during their marriage. Depp, who denies the allegations, is suing his ex-wife for defamation, claiming that a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which Heard identifies herself as a survivor of domestic abuse hurt his career and reputation. The Drive Angry actress did not mention Depp by name in the article.
Moss is set to testify in Depp’s ongoing defamation trial against Heard on Wednesday, March 25.
Scroll through for a timeline of Depp and Moss’ relationship:
