Johnny Depp, the Hollywood actor, has claimed he was betrayed by his friends after being accused of abuse by his ex-wife Amber Heard.

The strongly denied claims were first levelled against Depp, 62, by Heard during divorce proceedings in 2016.

The actor’s failed marriage to the 39-year-old actress made international headlines when details of alleged violence between the pair were aired in courts in the UK and US.

Depp has now criticised the behaviour of several close friends at the time and also claimed he had been a “crash test dummy for the #MeToo movement”.

“I’ll tell you what hurts. There are people, and I’m thinking of three, who did me dirty. Those people were at my kids’ parties, throwing them in the air,” he told The Sunday Times.

“And, look, I understand people who could not stand up [for me], because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice.”