Amber Heard Returns To The Big Screen With ‘Silenced’

Amber Heard He has returned to the screen in a limited but notable way, making an unexpected appearance in a documentary that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

The “Drive Angry” star has retreated from the spotlight in recent years following her highly publicized court battle with her ex-husband Johnny Deep.

Heard appeared in two film roles in the legal drama’s immediate aftermath, but has not announced any new major film or television roles since. Her appearance in the Sundance documentary marks a rare return in front of the camera.

Amber Heard will appear on the big screen at Sundance as part of the Australian documentary “Silenced.”

The documentary was directed by Selina Miles and produced in collaboration with human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson, who also makes a prominent appearance.

Heard previously worked with Robinson during Depp’s UK libel case against News Group Newspapers, in which the New South Wales lawyer advised the actress as a defense witness.

Heard’s “silent” appearance follows this professional association. She is interviewed in the film as one of several subjects. Others interviewed include Colombian journalist Catalina Ruiz Navarro and former Australian parliamentary staffer Brittany Higgins.

In “Silenced,” Robinson fights against what is described on the Sundance show’s official website as “the use of libel laws as a weapon to silence survivors.”

The documentary features Heard, Ruiz-Navarro, and Higgins, all of whom have accused men in positions of power of misconduct against them. They may all later become involved in defamation cases, albeit in different capacities.

Ruiz Navarro was directly sued for defamation by Colombian director Ciro Guerra for publicizing several cases of sexual impropriety reported against him. By contrast, Heard and Higgins were called as witnesses in proceedings relating to their allegations.

Robinson addresses how such legal action can impact those who choose to come forward.

“In a post-#MeToo world, we have seen women speaking out about gender-based violence,” Robinson said in an interview with Variety. “What we then saw was the alleged perpetrator filed a libel suit saying, ‘This is libel, and I will sue you for a lot of money.’”

Heard’s limited, somber appearance in Silenced marks her first involvement in a film since Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is released in 2023.

Heard’s lengthy legal dispute with Depp began in 2019, a period in which she reached dizzying heights in her film career.

Aquaman had been released to widespread commercial success the previous year, with the Texas actress starring alongside Jason Momoa.

After a ruling largely in Depp’s favor in 2022, Heard returned to work on two films released the following year, including “Aquaman 2.” The actress will not appear on the big screen until her appearance in the movie “Silenced.”

Stepping away from screen acting does not mean that Heard has abandoned the profession completely.

In June 2025, she landed her first acting role in two years when she joined the cast of “Spirit of the People,” a stage production by Jeremy O. Harris, presented at the Williamston Theater Festival.

Heard portrayed a character named Genevieve, a role she seemed to really enjoy. In one of her Instagram posts, she took a photo alongside Harris and captioned it: “In my theater era.”