Two weeks ago, Johnny Depp filed a $28 million lawsuit against his former business managers—claiming that they collected over $25 million in fees the Pirates of the Caribbean star never agreed to pay; failed to pay his taxes on time; and engaged in other fraudulent activities while managing his fortune over the last 17 years. And on Tuesday, said former business managers—the Management Group—countersued Depp, alleging that the actor “lived an ultra-extravagant lifestyle that often knowingly cost Depp in excess of $2 million per month to maintain, which he simply could not afford.”
The countersuit goes on to outline a number of alleged expenses Depp rang up over his 17 years with The Management Group. Among them:
- Over $75 million to “acquire, improve and furnish 14 residences, including a 45-acre chateau in the South of France, a chain of islands in the Bahamas, multiple houses in Hollywood, several penthouse lofts in downtown Los Angeles, and a fully-functioning house farm in Kentucky.”
- Over $18 million to “acquire and renovate a 150 foot luxury yacht.”
- Millions “acquiring and/or maintaining at least 45 luxury vehicles.”
- $30,000 per month on wine “he had flown to him from around the world for his personal consumption.”
- Over $3 million “to blast from a specially-made cannon the ashes of author Hunter Thompson over Aspen, Colorado.“
- Millions “to acquire and maintain a massive and extremely expensive art collection including over 200 collectible pieces and works by world famous artists such as Warhol, Klimt, Basquiat, and Modigliani; many pieces of expensive world class jewelry; and approximately 70 collectible guitars.”
- Over $150,000/month on full-time security for his children.
- At least $300,000/month on a staff of approximately 40 full-time employees.
- Over $10 million in financial support to his friends, family, and certain employees.
- Over $4 million on a start-up musical label run by a childhood friend.
In response to the countersuit, Adam Waldman, a representative for Endeavor Law Firm—the firm representing Depp—offered the following statement to VanityFair.com.
“How cataloguing alleged spending by Mr. Depp of his own money could somehow absolve the defendants of a large and multi-faceted mosaic of wrongdoing will ultimately be determined by the Court.”
In the original lawsuit, Depp’s attorney Matthew Kanny wrote, “Mr. Depp is one of the most sought after and highly paid actors in the world. . . . He is also the victim of the gross misconduct of his business managers—the Management Group and attorneys Joel and Robert Mandel—who collected tens of millions of dollars of contingent fees, purportedly based on an oral contract, all at Mr. Depp's expense.”
Per The Hollywood Reporter, Depp also claimed that his former business managers “failed to file or pay his taxes on time, costing him $5.6 million in federal penalties and interest, failed to keep proper books and loaned nearly $10 million of his money to third parties without authorization.”
On Tuesday, a representative for the Management Group offered VanityFair.com the following statement about their countersuit:
