Emily Hampshire Regrets Donning Johnny Depp and Amber Heard Inspired Halloween Costumes: “Deeply Sorry”

Better late than never. Schitts Creek star Emily Hampshire quickly realized her choice of Halloween costumes was less funny and more offensive. Following that, she took down photos from her social media accounts and issued an official apology for dressing up as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard for the spooky festival. 

On Tuesday, October 31, 2023, the Canadian actress posted the costumes on her Instagram account. Although she deleted the photos, TMZ published them the following day, where she was dressed as Depp. The actress received a lot of flak for her "thoughtless" garb, prompting her to accept her mistake. 

In the photos, Hampshire dressed up as the former couple with her friends. They donned the outfits from their highly-publicized defamation lawsuit in 2022. The 42-year-old actress wore a beige pinstriped suit resembling Depp, including makeup (facial hair) and tattoos, looking like his replica. 

Her friend recreated one of Heard's trial looks in a ruffled button-down, black skirt, and sheer black tights. To make their costumes more realistic, they included questionable props that were used as references in the trial, like fake poop and a bottle of wine. However, Hampshire, known as "Stevie" on Schitts Creek, felt remorse over her act. 

On Wednesday, November 1, 2023, she issued an apology on her Instagram account, taking accountability for her ignorant costume idea. She wrote, "I want to address what is one of the most thoughtless, insensitive, and ignorant things I've ever done," referencing the infamous exes' trial dresses. 

The apology continued, "For Halloween, I stupidly thought it would be funny to dress as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. I am deeply sorry and ashamed for putting something that awful out in the universe." She added a bit about understanding the gravity of something as serious as domestic abuse and accepted there's nothing humorous about it. 

"Domestic abuse is never, ever funny. These are real issues with real people, and I REALLY regret my actions," Hampshire concluded. "In the future, I will do better. I'm so sorry." Although, overall, she received massive backlash for attempting such an act, a handful of people thought her intentions were misconstrued, and her costumes weren't offensive enough to issue an apology. 

A fan, @Serah Singh, called her out, "Emily, you took the time to recreate Johnny Depp's tattoos but not enough time to reflect on the message you'd be sending to millions by mocking DV[Domestic Violence]?" Another, @agus.montes, echoed, "I think you need better friends, Emily! Anyone with two brain cells could have told you that was a bad idea." 

Meanwhile, a supporter, @kates_welle87, wrote, "I don't think your intention was to make fun of domestic abuse…I think the intention was to make fun of the spectacle the trial became. I thought it was funny." The infamous public trial of Depp and Heard became top news for tabloids. 

Depp argued that his ex-wife defamed him by labeling him as an abuser, something he's vehemently denied, and in June 2022, a Virginia jury found the Aquaman actress guilty. After enough public scrutiny, the two have moved on with their lives.