The astrology of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard

[Update: About an hour after writing this post, I read that Amber Heard had been granted a restraining order against Depp, for alleged domestic violence.]

Johnny Depp and his wife of 15 months, Amber Heard, are getting divorced. Heard filed for divorce on May 23rd, 2016, citing ‘irreconcilable differences.’ In this post I’ll take a brief look at the astrology of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.

What can astrology tell us, if anything, about Depp and Heard’s current situation?

Let’s use the astrological technique of ‘synastry’ to look at planetary connections between their respective horoscopes (or ‘charts’). I’ve covered the basics of synastry in another blog post.

Johnny Depp was born June 9th, 1963, at 8:44am, in Owensboro, Kentucky. This data is rated ‘AA’ (very accurate, from birth certificate) by astrodatabank.com.

Amber Heard’s birth data is less accurate. According to Wikipedia, she was born April 22nd, 1986, in Austin, Texas. Her birth time is unknown. This means we can still get some useful information, but we have to ignore the Moon’s position and the houses in her horoscope.

Let’s look at their horoscopes. In the diagram below, Depp’s horoscope is on inside. Heard’s is on the outer circle, or ‘wheel.’

There is certainly attraction and chemistry between them. This is usually shown by connections (by aspect) between the two horoscopes. Specifically Venus and/or Mars in one person’s horoscope and the Venus and/or Mars in the other.

With Depp and Heard we see Heard’s Venus at 25° 03′ Taurus very close to (‘conjunct’) Depp’s Mercury and Venus (blue oval, above). Venus in Taurus people also tend to like luxury, fine food, the arts. And this would be an area of common interest for them.

Let’s look at some other planetary interactions here. There’s a square aspect (about 90°) between Depp’s Pluto and Heard’s Saturn (blue arrows). Positively, this could be Depp providing powerful (Pluto) support to Heard’s sense of responsibility (Saturn). More negatively, it might be seen as controlling.

And there’s also a square aspect between Depp’s Jupiter and Heard’s Mars (red arrows). Here Depp’s enthusiasm (Jupiter) will motivate (Mars) Heard, and this would likely be a positive influence, as Jupiter is generally a fairly optimistic energy.

However, the synastry of most concern is Depp’s Saturn in square aspect to Heard’s Venus (green arrows). Saturn tends to organise, structure and (at worst) inhibit. There’s a possibility here that Heard felt ‘suffocated’ by Depp, or under too much pressure from him.

This is also shown by the fact that it is Depp’s outer planets (Saturn, Jupiter, Pluto) influencing Heard’s more inner planets (Venus, Mars, Saturn). This combined influence is of Depp as the senior partner, as the ‘authority’ figure. This is also not helped by the age difference between them.

[Update: after writing this post, The Guardian reported that Heard has been granted a restraining order against Depp. In a statement, she said:

“…during the entirety of our relationship, Johnny has been verbally and physically abusive to me. I endured excessive emotional, verbal and physical abuse from Johnny, which has included angry, hostile, humiliating and threatening assaults to me whenever I questioned his authority or disagreed with him.”]

Finally, Heard’s Sun at 2° 18′ Taurus is conjunct Depp’s Midheaven (chunky purple arrow, above). The Midheaven (or ‘M.C.’) is the point of career and reputation. Depp’s relationship with Heard boosts Depp’s public profile and red-carpet appeal.

Now let’s look at recent events.

Marriage

In looking at the astrology of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, an astrological timing technique I like and use is Solar Arc Directions (read more about them here). Since we only have accurate data for Depp, I’ll use just his horoscope. He married Heard on Feb 3rd, 2015.

Here’s Depp’s horoscope (inner circle). And his Solar Arc Directions (SAD) (middle) and transits (outer) for that date.

This diagram is called a 90° dial, or wheel. Conjunctions, squares and oppositions all display as conjunctions. It’s a recognised astrological diagramming technique that makes it clearer to see exactly what is going on.

On their wedding day, Depp’s SAD Moon-Jupiter is aspecting Mars in his horoscope (blue oval). This indicates emotional optimism (Moon-Jupiter) combines with ‘taking action’ (Mars). It’s about seizing the moment.

And if we look to the immediate past (chunky green arrow) we can see that Depp’s Mercury-Venus is just past exactly aspecting his horoscope’s Moon-Jupiter. The SAD planets all move about one degree a year, anti-clockwise on the above diagram. When they married, Depp and Heard had been dating for about three years.

Mercury-Venus (communication about love, art, etc) had been connecting with Depp’s Moon-Jupiter (emotional optimism, leaps of faith) during their dating phase.

Filing for divorce

Heard filed for divorce on May 23rd, 2016. Using the same setup as above, let’s see how Depp’s SADs look for that date.

You’ll notice the planets in the middle SAD band have moved counter-clockwise by a few degrees since the marriage date.

And that Saturn, the planet of structure and realism, now aspects the Moon-Jupiter in Depp’s horoscope (blue oval, above). This indicates a ‘honeymoon is over’ phase. It’s a wake up call. It also coincides with the death of Depp’s mother,  Betty Sue Palmer, on May 20th.

In relationships generally, this kind of aspect might simply indicate a time of the pragmatic (Saturn) requirements of a relationship; the work (Saturn) that’s required after the initial romance has worn off a little. And facing the realities of the relationship, more so than idealism. This does not have to be a bad or negative experience. It can simply mean seeing things as they really are, rather than what your wishful self thought they were. It’s a time of responsibility, which is a Saturn keyword.

Here, for whatever reason, Depp will be experiencing hardship (Saturn) and a reality check to his normally optimistic Moon-Jupiter, which was activated around his wedding day, and in the year prior.

The astrology of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard: summary

Depp and Heard’s relationship showed plenty of promise and optimism. However, after just 15 months of marriage, it appears it’s over. Exactly why, is something only Depp and Heard would know. But Heard is alleging domestic violence as a factor that led to the divorce filing.

But we can say that there is (or was) a fundamental initial chemistry and attraction between them. And that possibly Heard has experienced Depp as too over-bearing. Perhaps the age difference of about 22 years was a factor.

The wedding date was a great one in terms of acting (Mars) on that Moon-Jupiter exuberance and optimism. But when SAD Saturn comes along, it can feel like a lead balloon. The practical reality of their lives becomes the focus. It may have been a time when one or both of them asked, ‘What’s in this for me, really?’

Solar Arc Directions provide a clear timing of some key life events. Much more so, in my experience, than other astrological techniques such as transits or progressions.