Johnny Depp insisted he never tried to control Amber Heard's career while testifying in court on Monday.
The Pirates of the Caribbean actor is suing his ex-wife for $50 million (£38 million) over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which she described herself as "a public figure representing domestic abuse".
In addition, the Aquaman actress is countersuing Depp for $100 million (£77 million), claiming his former lawyer defamed her by rejecting the abuse claims. They were married between 2015 and 2016.
While taking the stand at the Fairfax County Courthouse in Virginia on Monday, Depp was shown a text message exchange between himself and Heard from 2013 in which she told him she was at a "coffee meeting".
"NO F**KING MEETINGS!!! NO MOVIES!!! Why??? Why do you deviate from our agreement???" he replied. "What species of meeting??? F**k it. Just tell me when you get home."
Depp was confronted about the content by Heard's lawyer, Benjamin Rottenborn, who asked the Benny & Joon actor whether he had attempted to oversee the 36-year-old's Hollywood career.
The actor asserted the allegation was "absolutely not true" and that he had actually tried to give her advice on navigating the industry.
"We had an agreement to do something together...This is not necessarily an angry text, it's just (asking), 'Why do you deviate from our agreement?' It's not about her doing films. How do you think she got Aquaman?" he asked as part of the testimony. "She wanted to be able to escape the chains of being objectified by the Hollywood system, which is a difficult thing for any woman, certainly unfortunately. But she asked me, 'How can I avoid being stereotyped as the beautiful blonde who gets her breasts out or goes naked?' I gave her my advice on it, on how to avoid it, which I thought was pretty accurate. Her ambition was stronger than what she received from my advice. My advice that I thought long and hard about, because I did care for her and I did understand."
Heard is also expected to testify during the trial.
