Not everyone was offended by Lance Bass’ TikTok reenactment of Amber Heard’s testimony in her ongoing defamation trial against ex-husband Johnny Depp.
Comedian Jenny Johnson found the since-deleted video to be quite amusing, hailing the *NSYNC alum’s performance in it as worthy of an Academy Award.
“It feels like this Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial has been going on forever and as if I needed another reason to love @lancebass anymore… 🎶Then a hero comes along…🎶 Swipe to watch this Oscar performance —->,” she wrote on Instagram, having snagged Bass’ video before it was taken down.
In the short clip, the “Bye Bye Bye” singer acted out the part of Heard’s testimony in which she described the first time Depp, 58, allegedly struck her during their brief marriage. The actress’ real-life voice played in the background.
“I lose my balance. At this point, we’re sitting next to each other on the edge of the couch — or, I was on the edge of the couch,” Heard, 36, said in court, as Bass, 43, stumbled across his living room and made his way to the couch.
“I was just sitting there on this carpet, looking at this dirty carpet, wondering how I wound up on this carpet and why I never noticed that the carpet was so filthy before,” she continued, as a confused Bass threw himself onto the ground and sniffed the shag rug beneath him.
Simultaneously, someone off camera — perhaps husband Michael Turchin — threw ripped-up pieces of paper onto the former boy band member and the floor.
“I just didn’t know what else to do, I didn’t know what to say, I didn’t know how to react,” Heard’s voice trailed off.
Bass deleted the post following a slew of backlash from critics who felt it was in poor taste to make a mockery of the alleged domestic violence.
As one dissenter argued, the video could potentially “dissuade victims from ever coming forward again.”
The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star is currently battling it out with the “Aquaman” actress over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed she wrote in which she described herself as a victim of physical and sexual abuse.
Although she did not mention Depp by name, he alleges that the piece tarnished his reputation and career.
The “Edward Scissorhands” star has long denied his ex-wife’s claims that he beat her and threatened to kill her while under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
They were married from 2015 to 2017.