Influencer Trisha Paytas denied defending Amber Heard after saying they could 'empathize' with her situation

• Trisha Paytas denied defending Amber Heard, but said she "empathized" with her.
• In a video, Paytas shared their opinion about the defamation case between Heard and Johnny Depp.

YouTuber Trisha Paytas said they "empathize" with Amber Heard, after previously saying she "shouldn't ever work" in Hollywood again unless she showed remorse.

In a YouTube video posted April 28, Paytas, who uses "they" and "them" pronouns, was sitting in a car with their husband, Moses Hacmon. They said they saw reports saying the YouTuber "defended" Amber Heard in a previous YouTube video, where they discussed the ongoing defamation trial between Heard and her ex-husband husband Johnny Depp.

"I saw a title today that was like, 'Trisha Paytas defends Amber Heard.' I was not defending her, I literally was just like, I can empathize with her," said Paytas. Several YouTube videos and news articles have described Paytas as "defending" Heard online.

In their previous video, uploaded on April 22 to their secondary channel where they post updates about their pregnancy, Paytas discussed the trial for 13 minutes. They appeared to support Depp, who accused Heard of physical abuse, saying, "I feel horrible for Johnny Depp, to be physically abused, and in a society where you're the man being abused by a woman."

They also said that Heard "shouldn't ever work again" unless she "shows remorse."

However, they also said, "I think I might be the only person with a little empathy towards Amber because I've been there before," going on to say they have previously "come forward and talked about something" that happened to them, but added, "no one believed me." Paytas did not specify what incident they were referring to.

Paytas, who has 4.9 million subscribers, has been known for getting into controversial feuds with other influencers and has previously spoken out against YouTubers Ethan Klein and David Dobrik. More recently, Paytas, who announced they are pregnant in February, responded to critics who said they were faking the news for views.

The Depp v Heard trial began on April 11 and is still underway. Depp is suing Heard for $50 million dollars following a 2018 essay she wrote detailing accusations of physical abuse against her. Heard did not specify who the accusations were about, but they were widely considered to be about Depp. Heard has filed a $100 million counterclaim.

On social media, various influencers and individuals have commented on news about Depp and Heard, as the trial continues to attract media attention. On April 27, beauty YouTuber Jaclyn Hill said ongoing discussion about the trial prompted her to share a story about a purported encounter she had with Heard at a restaurant several years ago.

Heard did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment at the time.

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