Johnny Depp; Rihanna. CREDIT: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 4 presented by Prime Video; REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Johnny Depp has thanked Rihanna publicly for enlisting him to star in her latest Savage X Fenty campaign show.

The actor’s casting was met with criticism earlier this month due to the controversy around the defamation case he won against his ex-wife Amber Heard.

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Depp was awarded $10million (£8million) in compensatory damages and $5million (£4.2million) in punitive damages. Heard was awarded $2million (£1.7million) after the jury found that Depp had defamed her through his attorney.

The actor sued Heard for defamation over a 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post in which she wrote about being a survivor of domestic violence. Heard didn’t mention Depp by name in the piece although Depp’s lawyers argued that it falsely implied that she was sexually and physically abused by him in during their marriage.

Yesterday (November 10) Depp shared a teaser from Rihanna’s lingerie fashion show film, which was released this week on Amazon Prime Video. He thanked the singer for including him in her project.

Despite winning his defamation trial against Heard this summer, Depp has been targeted online by some people who believe that he physically and emotionally abused Heard. Depp has continually denied Heard’s allegations although did admit to drinking heavily during their relationship.

Olly Alexander of Years & Years and It’s A Sin fame vowed to stop supporting the brand in the wake of Depp’s casting.

Alexander, who has been photographed previously wearing a harness and underwear for a Savage x Fenty promotional campaign, expressed disappointment last week with the decision to hire Depp for the role.

Last Thursday (November 3) he retweeted a post about Depp’s appearance in the show, adding a frown emoticon.
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A fan replied to that tweet saying that Alexander wears the Savage x Fenty range “so well”. He responded by thanking them but added that “after this news I won’t be wearing it anymore”.

However, several of Depp’s celebrity contemporaries commented with messages of support, including Paris Hilton who shared a fire emoji.

One fan also wrote: “I’m so glad Rihanna is including you in her show. Maybe I’ll buy something from Fenty now lol.”

Depp’s starring moment in the Savage X Fenty show saw him walk towards the camera while staring down the camera lens, surrounded by male shirtless dancers in a forest.

The actor and musician is seemingly the man in demand at the moment, as only last month it was announced that the Hollywood Vampires would be hitting the road in the UK for a tour next summer.

The rock supergroup – comprising Depp, Alice Cooper, Joe Perry and Tommy Henriksen – will perform six UK dates next July in Scarborough, Swansea, Manchester, London, Birmingham and Glasgow.