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Amber Heard drops defamation lawsuit against Johnny Depp confidante Doug Stanhope

Published: 14:59 EST, 6 September 2016 | Updated: 15:01 EST, 6 September 2016

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Amber Heard has dropped her defamation suit against comedian Doug Stanhope over an essay written by the 49-year-old comic - a close friend of Johnny Depp's - claiming that the 30-year-old actress was cooking up phony abuse allegations to leverage the A-list actor, 53, in their divorce.

'Amber is moving on, getting back to work and leading a normal, happy life,' a rep for the Zombieland beauty on Tuesday told TMZ, who first reported the development, citing court docs.

The dropped suit was linked to a settlement the Black Mass star and Heard had come to terms on, one condition being the elimination of all lawsuits stemming from the accusations of domestic abuse she levied against him in their May split.

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Moving on: Amber Heard, 30, dropped a defamation suit she'd filed against Johnny Depp pal Doug Stanhope over a controversial essay he wrote in defense of the actor

Stand-up guy: Stanhope, 49, defended his friend Depp in a published piece in the wake of Heard's shocking abuse accusations against the actor

Rockin' on: Depp, 53, settled his divorce with Heard last month, with the agreement eradicating all lawsuits linked to her claims of abuse

Stanhope, in an essay published May 29 on The Wrap, recalled how he had seen Depp privately flustered by Heard's intent to part ways, and how the actress was 'threatening to lie about him publicly in any and every possible duplicitous way if he didn’t agree to her terms.

'Blackmail is what I would imagine other people might put it, including the manner in which he is now being vilified.'

Heard quickly shot back with the defamation suit, filed in Arizona, as she said in court docs that Stanhope's piece was 'completely false and defamatory,' and caused 'tremendous harm' in her life.

Legal battle: Heard quickly filed suit against the comedian after the piece was published, as she said it caused her 'tremendous harm'

Heard initially claimed in a Los Angeles court May 27 that Depp had hit her - and thrown at phone at her - earlier that month.

'During the entirety of our relationship, Johnny has been verbally and physically abusive to me,' Heard, who began dating Depp when they filmed 2011's The Rum Diary, said in her legal push for a restraining order. 'I endured excessive emotional, verbal and physical abuse from Johnny, which has included angry, hostile, humiliating and threatening assaults to me whenever I questioned his authority or disagreed with him.'

The judge granted Heard - who sported a bruised cheek in her courthouse outing - a temporary restraining order, but the estranged couple settled their legal issues a day prior to a scheduled hearing in the matter.

Tough times: Heard sported a bruised cheek in her initial outing for a restraining order in Los Angeles on May 27

On August 16 in Los Angeles, Depp and Heard squared away their divorce settlement, with Heard taking back the accusations she made of abuse against the Edward Scissorhands actor.

The Pirates of the Caribbean star and Heard subsequently said in a joint statement that 'there never any intent of physical or emotional harm' between the two, and that neither had 'made false accusations for financial gain.'

'Our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love.'

No more Mr. Nice Guy: Depp, seen here with rock legend Alice Cooper in July, saw his latest film, Alice Through the Looking Glass, wither at the box office amid Heard's bold claims