Two celebrity court cases have captivated the world over the last year – Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s $100 million defamation trial and Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski accident case against Terry Sanderson.
And while both of the trials were similar in that they completely engrossed the nation and saw two very influential and well-known women facing off against a man in court – the end result was very different for the two ladies involved, as one came out victorious and one didn’t.
Not only did Gwyneth, 50, win her case – a jury found that she was not to blame for the incident on Thursday, and awarded her with the $1 she asked for – but she also seemed to earn the admiration of the entire world.
But Amber, 36, on the other hand, who was ordered to pay Johnny $10 million in the end, lost her case – and her reputation along the way.
Now, a group of legal and body language experts have weighed in on why the public – who was clearly captivated by both trials – seemed to back Gwyneth but turned on Amber exclusively to DailyMail.com – and dished on what the Goop founder did right and what the Aquaman star failed to do.
Both Amber Heard (left) and Johnny Depp’s trial and Gwyneth Paltrow (right) and Terry Sanderson’s case captured the nation – but result was very different for the women involved
A series of legal and body language experts have spoken exclusively to DailyMail.com about the differences between the two women’s legal tactics and manners in the courtroom
Perhaps it was her cool, calm, and collected persona or her sassy responses to the prosecution’s bizarre questions – who can forget her now-famous ‘I lost a day of skiing’ answer? – but it seemed as though the public was cheering Gwyneth on every step of the trial.
Social media was quick to turn many of Gwyneth’s statements from when she took the stand last week into viral memes – with one user claiming she deserved an ‘Oscar’ for her appearance in the courtroom and others stating that they now want to dress up as Courtroom Gwyneth for Halloween.
But when Amber and Johnny’s trial took place last year, the web had quite the opposite reaction to Amber’s courtroom demeanor and painted her in a very different light – with many people mocking the actress over her emotional outbursts and even suggesting that she was playing it up for the cameras.
As Gwyneth’s sensational trial comes to an end, experts spoke out about the immense differences between the two women’s legal tactics, as well as their manners in the courtroom – and revealed what they think Gwyneth’s winning move was versus Amber’s nail in the coffin.
From Gwyneth’s approachable but knowledgeably persona, which made her seem more like another attorney rather than a celebrity, to Amber’s erratic and tearful performance, which resulted in people accusing her of ‘trying to come off as the victim,’ here’s why lawyers think Gwyneth came out on top and Amber didn’t.
Their demeanors in the courtroom: Gwyneth seemed cool, calm, and collected, and focused on speaking to the lawyers – while Amber was emotional, would burst in to tears, and often played to the jury
Gwyneth seemed cool, calm, and collected during the trial, and focused on speaking to the lawyers – while Amber was emotional, would burst in to tears, and often played to the jury
Body language expert Judi James told DailyMail.com that Gwyneth was ‘sociable’ and came off as less of a celebrity and more like ‘one of the legal team’
At first glance, the answer to why the world had such a contrasting reaction to the two trials seems obvious – Amber and Johnny’s trial involved serious allegations of abuse and assault – but the question still remains why people were so against Amber and so gushing over Gwyneth.
The experts say that one likely reason for this is their contrasting behavior in the courtroom. Not only did Gwyneth seem a lot more put together during the trial, but she also focused on speaking to the lawyers – while Amber often directed the jury.
Body language expert Judi James spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com about how Gwyneth’s subtle expressions and movements helped her win her case – and the affection of the public – while Amber’s sunk hers.
According to Judi, Gwyneth was ‘sociable’ and came off as less of a celebrity and more like ‘one of the legal team.’
‘She would arrive chatting or allow her eyes to scan the room before taking her seat,’ she explained. ‘Her demeanor on the bench would often give the impression that she was one of the legal team.
‘Some of these gestures of authority and even superiority would extend to her appearance on the stand.
‘Her chin was often raised, along with her eyebrows, and her lips would constantly purse and pucker in a gesture of disapproval.
‘When she wore her large spectacles she would often look over the top of them, with all of these rituals giving the look of a head teacher-style authority.’
In addition, she never seemed phased by the prosecutions ‘bizarre attempts to produce some narcissistic show-boating from the actress.’
Unfased: In addition, Judi said she never seemed phased by the prosecutions ‘bizarre attempts to produce some narcissistic show-boating from the actress’
Judi added: ‘People don’t like to feel or fear they are being played or duped, which is why tears will be scrutinized for authenticity and any histrionics can often cause doubt or distrust’
‘They failed as she maintained her air of polite graciousness in response,’ added Judi.
While Judi explained that Gwyneth showed hints of ‘regret’ and ‘anxiety’ here and there, overall, she said the actress seemed to ‘give off a sense of decisive thinking.’
When it came time for Gwyneth to describe the collision, Judi said: ‘She tended to act out the crash and her thoughts and emotions at the time in a way that seemed to give weight to her side of the story, while her generally calm demeanor gave no impression of over-working the cameras or the jury.
‘Gwyneth tended to steer clear of anything that could be seen as show-boating, over-congruence or emotional manipulation.
Attorney Christa Haggai Ramey added: ‘Gwyneth was direct. She made eye contact with the attorney speaking with her. She was not playing to the jury. This is very important because she is an actor. She did not come across as someone who was aware that jury was there and needed to be persuaded’
‘Her claim that “she lost half a day of skiing” might have sounded like a meme-dream but at least it wasn’t delivered with overkill signals of self-pity, just a wide-eyed, raised brow head nodding that suggested calm displeasure.
‘People don’t like to feel or fear they are being played or duped, which is why tears will be scrutinized for authenticity and any histrionics can often cause doubt or distrust.’
And that brings us to Amber. On the opposite spectrum, the Aquaman actress was often seen displaying ‘anger, distress, anguish, and tears’ throughout her trial, erupting in numerous emotional outbursts and bursting into tears on more that one occasion.
Judi previously told DailyMail.com that it seemed obvious to her that Amber was working in overtime to ‘humanize’ herself in the jury’s eyes, which likely didn’t go over well with the public.
Attorney Christa Haggai Ramey also weighed in on the topic to DailyMail.com, explaining, ‘Amber would listen to the question and turn to the jury to respond. It seemed more rehearsed. Rehearsed does not play as honest ion court.
‘Gwyneth was direct. She made eye contact with the attorney speaking with her. She was not playing to the jury.
‘This is very important because she is an actor. She did not come across as someone who was aware that jury was there and needed to be persuaded.’
Their legal tactics: Gwyneth focused on expert testimony and eye-witness reports – and benefited from the ‘star-struck’ prosecution – while Amber’s trial was based more on who the jury believed
Christa added that Gwyneth’s trial was more focused on expert testimony, while Amber’s was based on who the jury believed. Dr. Steven Edgily is seen testifying at Gwyneth’s trial
Christa explained that Gwyneth’s trial was much more focused on expert testimony and eye-witness reports, rather than Amber and Johnny’s, which was purely based on who the jury believed and less on scientific-based evidence.
‘Gwyneth had an incredible team of experts both for liability and damages to help her,’ explained the lawyer.
‘She really will wasn’t the reason this case was won. [Cases like this are] won or lost on the professional experts – in Gwyneth’s case, the biomechanics and the medical experts.
‘Amber’s likability went directly to her credibility. But the Gwyneth trial, whether or not you liked her did not really matter.
‘Gwyneth’s case boils down to expert witness testimony. Amber, on the other hand, was going to win or lose her case on whether or not you believed her.
‘There wasn’t really scientific evidence that would help support Amber like there is in the Gwyneth case.’
And that’s what opened Amber up to a lot more analysis and scrutiny over the way she acted in the courtroom.
‘The problem with trials of this level of emotional intensity is that there is a tendency to assume what a “natural” response should look like and evaluate authenticity or not from that pre-conception,’ Judi added.
‘In fact, there should be no assumptions about what “normal” responses should look like in highly abnormal or intense scenarios.
‘Our ideas of “normal” emotional responses are forged from watching actors in plays or soaps and hopefully not from our real-life experiences.
‘In reality, our body language responses to extreme tragedy or distress can be unexpected and often counter-intuitive.
In addition, she pointed out that Johnny (left) is a lot more likeable than Terry (right) is, which made it a lot easier for the public, and likely the jury, to take Gwyneth’s side
In the end, Christa said Gwyneth ‘did her job as a defendant and witness.’ She concluded: ‘She did great. She was unflappable. She was believable’
‘When Amber showed a range of strong emotions on the stand, she prompted decisions and verdicts from the public about her authenticity – or lack of it.’
In addition, Christa pointed out that Johnny is a lot more likeable than Terry is. She explained that since the retired doctor, 76, who was suing Gwyneth is a far cry from the charming and handsome actor, it made it a lot easier for the public, and likely the jury, to take Gwyneth’s side.
‘[Gwyneth won] because of the unlikeable – and not believable – plaintiff in Terry,’ she theorized.
Lastly, Christa said Gwyneth benefited from Terry’s lawyer, Kristin’s ‘star-struck’ attitude during the trial.
‘Terry’s attorney did not do herself any favors in her cross examination of Gwyneth,’ she continued.
‘The attorney seemed star-struck. She did not challenge her on cross. She seemed to be very aware of the cameras and her performance.
‘Gwyneth was confident in her testimony of the facts as she recalled them. These facts were never really challenged.
‘The same facts were then later the basis for the opinions of the defense biomechanical testimony – which was impressive.’
In the end, Christa said Gwyneth ‘did her job as a defendant and witness.’ She concluded: ‘She did great. She was unflappable. She was believable.’
Viral moments: Amber was heavily mocked on social media for her comments on the stand, but the internet had quite the opposite reaction to Gwyneth’s courtroom antics
While Amber was heavily criticized for almost everything she did during her time in the courtroom, the internet seemed to take a very different approach with Gwyneth
Both trials sparked a slew of media coverage and resulted in millions of people all across the country dissecting almost every moment of the trials.
Positive reception: Gwyneth was continuously praised for her courtroom antics – and many of her statements during the trial were turned into viral memes
There was many moments from both Amber and Gwyneth’s trial that captured the attention of the web – but while Amber was heavily criticized for almost everything she did during her time in the courtroom, the internet seemed to take a very different approach with Gwyneth.
She was continuously praised for her courtroom antics – and many of her statements during the trial were turned into viral memes.
Most notably, when Gwyneth was asked by Terry’s attorney Kristin Vanorman about the ‘losses’ she suffered during the accident, the Goop founder responded with the now-famous line, ‘Well, I lost half a day of skiing.’
Her answer quickly blew up online, with clips of the moment being reposted thousands of times across the web.
When Gwyneth was asked by Terry’s attorney Kristin Vanorman about the ‘losses’ she suffered during the accident, she responded with the now-famous line, ‘Well, I lost half a day of skiing’
People soon began flooding social media with their reactions to her answer, with one person calling it ‘art’ and another begging for someone to make a T-shirt with it written on it
People soon began flooding social media with their reactions to the line, with one person calling it ‘art’ and another begging for someone to make a T-shirt with it written on it.
Someone else said they were going to start using the line whenever a ‘minor inconvenience befalls them,’ and many others agreed.
A different user wrote that Gwyneth should be ‘cast on a Housewives franchise immediately,’ while someone else tweeted that it seemed like the trial was written by White Lotus creator Mike White.
Another moment of the trial that went viral was when Gwyneth was grilled by Terry’s attorney about her relationship with Taylor Swift.
It was brought into question since Gwyneth had countersued for $1 – which was the exact same amount that Taylor asked for during her case against a DJ who was accused of groping her in 2017.
Another moment of the trial that went viral was when Gwyneth was grilled by Terry’s attorney about her relationship with Taylor Swift. They are seen together in 2012
One person said the moment felt like more of an ‘SNL sketch’ than a trial, while someone else branded it as the ‘best television content the have watched in years’
When asked if Gwyneth was inspired by the pop star’s ‘symbolic’ request for a single dollar, the Contagion actress insisted that she was not familiar with Taylor’s case when she first made the decision, but added that she had learned about it afterwards.
Bizarrely, Kristin kept pushing Gwyneth about her relationship with Taylor, and continued to ask her about the status of their friendship – despite it having absolutely nothing to do with the case itself.
‘We are friendly. I’ve taken my kids to one of her concerts before, but we don’t talk very often,’ Gwyneth said.
Kristin then asked if the blonde beauty had ever sent Taylor a ‘personal intimate gift for Christmas,’ seemingly referring to a 2021 commercial for her lifestyle brand, in which she slid a vibrator into a gift bag that was addressed to Taylor.
Footage of the awkward cross-examination quickly went gained traction on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram.
The overall reaction to the trial was certainly more positive than it was with Amber and Johnny’s, during which, social media users branded her emotions as ‘unnatural’
One person said the moment felt like more of an ‘SNL sketch’ than a trial, while someone else branded it as the ‘best television content the have watched in years.’
Other moments during the trial that were heavily talked about online included the time that Terry compared Gwyneth to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and the incident when Terry’s lawyer asked Gwyneth about how tall she was and admitted she was jealous of her height.
But that doesn’t mean that there weren’t viral moments throughout their case too, like the time a fan brought an alpaca to the courtroom
The overall reaction to the trial was certainly more positive than it was with Amber and Johnny’s.
‘Look at her trying to come off as the victim,’ one person wrote on Twitter during Amber’s trial last year.
Someone else said her ‘facial expressions frighten them,’ while others branded her emotions as ‘unnatural.’
‘Her facial expressions, attitude, and whole demeanor during this trial is like the mean girls in high school,’ added another user.
But that doesn’t mean that there weren’t viral moments throughout Amber and Johnny’s case too – who could forget the moment that Amber’s lawyer objected to his own question or when a fan who brought an actual alpaca to the courtroom?
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk