Depp and Cosby - Perception of the Reel and the Real

Two well loved mega stars have recently been under the extensive scrutiny of media for serious criminal charges. Johnny Depp, the eccentric sweetheart of Tim Burton blockbusters was accused of physical abuse by his wife and The Rum Diary co-star Amber Heard. Depp was somewhat relieved of the allegations after settling the divorce case with Heard outside of court for a sum of money.

Nearly a year later, Bill Cosby, the lovable America’s Dad case ended in mistrial sending the media and by extension the masses into a frenzy.

It’s easy to draw parallels between the two cases and deduce them to be similar in the fact that the general opinion was divided in both cases owing to the celebrity of the accused. It’s not uncommon for an assault or rape victim to be distrusted and accused of ulterior motives when it comes to high profile individuals as these. As Gloria Allred, an attorney representing some of Cosby’s victims pointed out that people assume they personally know celebrities based on the characters they play on screen and subconsciously blur the lines between the reel and real.

In most known cases of crimes against women, the women are either blamed for ‘asking for it’, or being gold diggers or trying to gain attention. At other times, they face inquisition instead of receiving sympathy, “What was she doing there”, “Why was she with him” etc. This happened in the case of Amber Heard and Cosby’s victims too, or did it?

Female victims of assault are usually misjudged due to bias and this is unfortunately a very common phenomenon everywhere. However, the fact cannot be denied that as all accused men are not guilty, similarly all women who claim to be victims are not so. How then can the credibility of an allegation be verified?

Johnny Depp received support from several of his friends, family and fans; same as Bill Cosby. The biggest difference between the two cases however is the sheer difference in the number of allegations.

Depp was accused by his wife, who may or may not have a financial motive for her allegations which apparently forced her to seek divorce. The out of court settlement is confusing, as is the joint statement issued by the former couple which assures that no party lied for financial benefits. The authenticity of the claim of physical abuse made by Heard cannot be verified one way or another, it can only be guessed, at best.

Bill Cosby, on the other hand, has a myriad of registered criminal charges against him. His own statements prove his utter disregard for consent, which in itself qualifies as rape. Added to that is the astounding number of victims who have come forward with accusations that extend through decades. When the smoke is so noxious as to stifle such a huge number of people, the fire has to be incredibly scorching.  Added to that is the man’s unsettling self-defined concept of consent where he basically states “Not a no is a yes”, even if the victim may be physically unable to refuse consent or protest physically owing to the pills Cosby allegedly forced into their systems.

It may be so that both the celebrities are guilty and are being protected due to their popularity, or they both might in fact be innocent. The takeaway is that fictional representation of actors is, but should not be; a factor in influencing our opinions on their actual character profile.

PS – I might be biased, but given the covert circumstances of Depp’s divorce proceedings, I choose to believe in his innocence. Cosby, on the other hand….........

What do you think about celebrity cases? Do you believe Depp and/or Cosby are innocent? Do tell us in the comments below.