Does Johnny Depp Have Tourette Syndrome? Joke Explained

The entire Johnny Depp and Amber Heard case has become a public spectacle that’s full of different sights and sounds coming from both actors. Of course, Depp’s penchant for making jokes was always on full display during the trial. At one point, he even said that he had Tourette Syndrome during his rebuttal argument against Heard’s evidence and testimonies. So, does Johnny Depp actually have Tourette Syndrome?
Johnny Depp has never publicly addressed whether or not he has Tourette Syndrome, and that means that we don’t know if he has it or not. But what we do know is that he once said that his parents thought that he had Tourette Syndrome when he was a child because he did have a habit of doing weird things.
While we have become accustomed to Johnny Depp making a few jokes during the entire trial, we are not sure whether or not he was joking when he said that he had Tourette Syndrome. This has never been something that he had admitted to in the past. Still, we are here to talk about what we know about his condition and whether or not he does have Tourette Syndrome.
Why Does The Internet Think Johnny Depp Has Tourette Syndrome?
We all know about the fact that Johnny Depp is in the middle of a trial with Amber Heard in relation to the defamation suit he instituted against her for her essay, wherein she claimed that she was a victim of domestic violence. The trial has been going on since the first week of April and is now in the final portion of the case. Each party’s closing arguments will be given on May 27 as the jury will convene and come up with a verdict after.
In relation to that, Johnny Depp once again took the stand when he gave out his rebuttal to the evidence and testimonies that Amber Heard gave during the trial. And during the trial, Depp said that he wasn’t a perfect man, but he had never committed sexual or physical abuse in his entire life.
Depp also went on to say that he had been speaking the truth for six years and that he told nothing but the truth during the entire trial. After that, Depp’s attorney moved the discussion and then talked about how Amber Heard obtained a restraining order against her ex-husband back in 2016 before their divorce was finalized.
In talking about the restraining order, Johnny Depp said, “It changed everything,” before being objected to by Amber’s attorney. And after the objection by the opposing attorney, who said that it wasn’t relevant for him to talk about the restraining order, Depp said, “Oh, it didn’t change everything?”.
The judge, Penney Azcarate, told Depp, “Sir, if you could wait for the objection, please.” To that end, Johnny Depp replied, “I’m sorry. Tourette’s.”
This reply from Johnny Depp sparked an online conversation between fans of the actor as they now believe that he has Tourette Syndrome. And this has become an interesting discussion because this is the first time that the actor has ever talked about Tourette Syndrome while also doing so in a very casual manner.
For those who don’t know, Tourette’s Syndrome is a condition wherein a person often involuntarily does things or makes sounds repeatedly. This is a condition of the nervous system as the person cannot control themselves when making these involuntary movements. The CDC explains it as follows:
Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a condition of the nervous system. TS causes people to have “tics.”
Tics are sudden twitches, movements, or sounds that people do repeatedly. People who have tics cannot stop their body from doing these things. For example, a person might keep blinking over and over. Or, a person might make a grunting sound unwillingly.
Having tics is a little bit like having hiccups. Even though you might not want to hiccup, your body does it anyway. Sometimes people can stop themselves from doing a certain tic for a while, but it’s hard. Eventually the person has to do the tic.
Does Johnny Depp Have Tourette Syndrome?
As the internet now believes that Johnny Depp actually has Tourette Syndrome after he said one single line in relation to it, there are now people wondering if he really does have this condition. But the truth is that he has never publicly addressed whether or not he has Tourette Syndrome. And he has been in the industry long enough to the point that people would’ve noticed if he really had this condition.
However, there was a point in time when Johnny Depp said that his parents thought that he had Tourette’s Syndrome due to the noises and strange behavior he exhibited when he was a child.
“I made odd noises as a child. Just did weird things, like turn off light switches twice,” Depp said. “I think my parents thought I had Tourette’s syndrome.”
He also went on to say that there were certain symptoms of the condition that lingered even until he reached adulthood.
“I always have this fear if I’m in the theatre that I’ll suddenly stand up and scream or run up on stage,” Depp said. “Or if I’m walking down the street with a pal. “My God, that pole back there, we have to go back and walk around it.” I think it’s normal. Isn’t it?”
Then again, Johnny Depp has never publicly addressed that he was diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome by a professional. He probably didn’t go to see a professional that could tell whether or not he really does have Tourette’s. As such, we don’t know for sure whether or not he really does have Tourette’s Syndrome because only a public statement by Depp saying that he was medically diagnosed with this condition will actually answer the question.
Why Did Johnny Depp Joke About Having Tourette Syndrome?
So, if Johnny Depp doesn’t have Tourette Syndrome, why would he even say it during a public trial that people have been tuning into for nearly six weeks already?
Well, it could be due to the possibility that he really does have Tourette Syndrome and that he just never publicly addressed it before because he didn’t think that it was something too serious for the public to know. However, it could also be true that he was just simply joking about it.
If you look at the video of that moment, he immediately rebutted Amber Heard’s lawyer’s objection to what he said about the restraining order changing his life. The judge told him that he should first wait for the objection, and that was when he said that he had Tourette’s.
In that sense, he might have been joking about it because of how quickly he responded to the lawyer’s objection. As mentioned, Tourette Syndrome is an involuntary act, and that means that a person has little to no control over the certain “tics” that are the result of the condition. He could’ve been referring to his quick rebuttal as the “tic” of his Tourette Syndrome when he quickly responded to what Amber Heard’s lawyer said.
Then again, the only person who could really answer whether or not this was a joke or was a serious statement is Johnny Depp himself, who may or may not have Tourette Syndrome.