Photo: Media-Mode/Splash News
Elon Muskand AmberHeardhave known each other for over a decade — but while the SpaceX founder’s interest in theAquamanactress dates back to 2012, they didn’t actually get together until years later.
The former couple was first spotted out together several times throughout 2016, sparking romance rumors, and later went official with their relationship in April 2017.
Their budded romance turned heads at the time as both Heard and Musk were weathering public breakups. The actress andJohnny Deppfinalizedtheir divorce in January, while the tech mogul filed for divorce fromWestworldactressTalulah Rileyin early 2015.
Musk and Heard were in a relationship for four months before calling it quits in August 2017, but dated on and off in the months that followed before breaking up for good in 2018.
Despite Musk publicly stating that there’s no bad blood between himself and Heard, controversy has followed in the wake of their split.Depp referencedMusk and Heard’s relationship in hisdefamation trialin May 2022, and most recently, theactress' Twitter account vanishedin the wake ofMusk purchasing the social media company.
Here’s everything to know about Musk and Heard’s history together over the years.
2012: Elon Musk requests via email to meet Amber Heard
JB Lacroix/WireImage; Stefanie Keenan/Getty
In August 2016, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that Musk hadasked a mutual connection to introduce him to Heardaround the time of the 2013 filmMachete Kills, in which they both appeared.
Sources toldThe Hollywood Reporterthat Musk showed interest in the actress despite never sharing a scene with her and sent emails to director Robert Rodriguez and others asking for an introduction.
According to the report, a dinner was set up but Heard, who was dating Depp at the time, did not show up. Musk was reportedly not looking for a date, as he often likes to meet “interesting people from all different industries,” the source told PEOPLE.
May 2, 2016: Elon Musk and Amber Heard spend time together at the Met Gala
DuringDepp and Heard’s defamation trialin May 2022, the actress alleged thatshe got acquainted with Muskat the 2016Met Galaafter the actor “stood [her] up” on the red carpet.
“I didn’t recognize [Elon] until we started talking and he reminded me we had met once before,” she said, adding that the Tesla and SpaceX CEO “was with his mother,“Maye Musk, at the event.
July 16, 2016: Elon Musk and Amber Heard spark romance rumors
Elon Musk.ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty
The entrepreneur was in town for his SpaceX rocket launch at Cape Canaveral, while the actress was vacationing with her sister.
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July 22, 2016: A source tells PEOPLE that Elon Musk and Amber Heard are ‘just friends’
Despite romance rumors swirling after their Miami getaway, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that the two were not dating.
“Amber and Elon are friends and have been for a few years,” the source said at the time. “Their work schedules overlapped in Florida over the weekend… Elon was there for the SpaceX launch and Amber was there with her sister for a shoot.”
Aug. 2, 2016: Elon Musk and Amber Heard are spotted at a London nightclub together
Two weeks after Musk and Heard were both seen in Miami, they werespotted leaving London’s The Box nightclubseparately in August 2016. An eyewitness told PEOPLE that the two arrived together and “they looked like boyfriend and girlfriend.”
April 23, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard go Instagram official
Amber Heard/Instagram
Heard and Musk solidified their relationshipwith a cheeky Instagram post in April 2017. The actress shared an image of the two sitting beside each other at a restaurant, with Heard resting her arm on Musk’s shoulder and the tech mogulsporting a lipstick kiss mark on his cheek.
Earlier that day, the couple was seen in Australia, where the actress was filming the movieAquamanat the time. The pair walked arm-in-arm at the Gold Coast’s Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, marking one of Musk and Heard’s first public appearances together.
April 25, 2017: A source tells PEOPLE that Elon Musk loves Amber Heard’s ‘edginess’
Shortly after going Instagram official, a source told PEOPLE that Musk was drawn to Heard because she was unique. “Elon loves a pretty face, but he needs more to be intrigued, Amber has lots more to offer,” the insider said at the time.
“Elon is attracted to her edginess. She isn’t frightened about being different,” the source added. “She doesn’t get easily intimidated. She is very focused and loves to learn.”
April 25, 2017: A source tells PEOPLE that Elon Musk thinks Amber Heard ‘played hard to get’
Elon Musk.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
It wasn’t until the “time was right” — when they were both single in 2016 — that Musk started looking for a relationship with Heard. “She was playing hard to get for a while, which made him even more interested,” the insider added.
April 30, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard get dinner at RockSugar in Los Angeles
Musk and Heard appeared to beenjoying each other’scompany when they dined together at Century City’s RockSugar in Los Angeles, an onlooker told PEOPLE at the time. They were both seen dressed casually while eating appetizers.
May 1, 2017: A source tells PEOPLE that Elon Musk and Amber Heard are ‘very serious about each other’
After spending a lot of time together, a source told PEOPLE that “Elon and Amberare already very serious about each other.” The insider added, “She spends a lot of time at his house and is very comfortable there. Amber’s also gotten to know his kids and spends time with them as well.”
For fun, the source said Musk “takes her on romantic dinner dates and they also love hanging out in Malibu.” Overall, the SpaceX founder seemed “noticeably happier since he started dating Amber,” the insider added.
May 28, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard show PDA during a date in Australia
Media-Mode/Splash News
Musk and Heard stepped out in Sydney, Australia once again for a date night, where they were seen walkingarm-in-arm on their strollthrough the city.
Aug. 7, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard break up
About a year after they were first romantically linked,Musk and Heard called it quitsin early August 2017. The two broke up due to their respectively busy schedules, a source confirmed to PEOPLE at the time.
“They had fun for a few months, but are both very busy with work now. It was getting hard to find time to see each other,” the source said, adding that Musk initiated the split. “Elon is working day and night. This is his life and he loves it. He is in no position to be in a relationship right now and ended it.”
“Although Amber and I did break up, we are still friends, remain close and love one another,“the tech mogul wroteon her page. “Long distance relationships, when both partners have intense work obligations are always difficult, but who knows what the future holds.”
Aug. 11, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard issue joint statement about their breakup
Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty; Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images
After Musk and Heard were spotted together a few days after their breakup, the former couple releaseda formal statement to clear the air.
The joint statement, exclusively shared with PEOPLE, read: “Having read recent articles about our relationship, we would like to speak for ourselves. The distance has been really tough on our relationship, because we haven’t been able to see each other much. All relationships have their ups and downs, of course.”
“People occasionally send out speculation, which has no basis in fact, without our knowledge, believing that they have our best interests in mind,” the statement continued. “Sometimes, other agendas are at work. It can get a little weird… However, we would like to state directly that we have the utmost respect for one another, and it would be troubling if anyone had the impression that we thought otherwise.”
They ended the statement writing: “As a closing note, it is worth bearing in mind that events are always amplified and dramatized in a high profile relationship, whether the people involved like it or not (and we definitely don’t). The reality is that this is just a normal relationship with a giant magnifying glass applied.”
Nov. 15, 2017: Elon Musk opens up about split from Amber Heard
During an interview withRolling Stone, Musk opened up about what he’s looking for in a lifelong partner and dove deep intothe toll his relationship with Heard took on him emotionally.
“Well, she broke up with me more than I broke up with her, I think,” Musk admitted. “I was really in love and it hurt bad.” The tech mogul said that he “cannot be happy” without a girlfriend.
“I will never be happy without having someone. Going to sleep alone kills me,” he added. “It’s not like I don’t know what that feels like: Being in a big empty house, and the footsteps echoing through the hallway, no one there — and no one on the pillow next to you. F—. How do you make yourself happy in a situation like that?”
Dec. 22, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard share a kiss four months after their split
Craig Barritt/Getty; JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty
Four months following their split,photographs surfaced of Musk and Heard sharing a kissat a Los Angeles restaurant — leaving fans curious about their potentially rekindled relationship. Despite the romantic gesture, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that the two were just having a friendly visit.
Dec. 29, 2017: Elon Musk and Amber Heard get dinner together in Chile
The former couple wasseen vacationing together in Chileand enjoying dinner with friends, including the Tesla CEO’s brother Kimbal Musk. The restaurant they were dining at, El Taringa, posted anInstagramphoto of the crew with the actress and Musk sitting next to each other at the table.
Jan. 22, 2018: Elon Musk and Amber Heard hold hands on a sushi dinner date
After going their separate ways in August, Musk and Heard sparked romance rumors once again when they were photographedwalking hand-in-hand as they left a sushi restaurantin Los Angeles. “They’re definitely back together,” a source close to the couple confirmed to PEOPLE at the time.
Feb. 1, 2018: Elon Musk and Amber Heard break up for a second time
After briefly reuniting, Musk and Heardcalled it quits for a second time. “Elon decided it was time to end it and Amber agreed,” a source close to the couple told PEOPLE in February 2018. “They both still care deeply for each other but the timing wasn’t right.”
March 2, 2018: Elon Musk and Amber Heard attend the same Oscars party
Samir Hussein/WireImage; Theo Wargo/Getty
A month after splitting for a second time, Musk and Heard were bothseen arriving at the same pre-Academy Awards partyin Los Angeles.
Dec. 6, 2018: Amber Heard reflects on split from Elon Musk
10 months after Heard and Musk broke up for the second time in February, the actressopened up about her ex-boyfriendin an interview withThe Hollywood Reporter. “Elon and I had a beautiful relationship, and we have a beautiful friendship now, one that was based on our core values,” she said.
As for what drew the two together, the actress said the two bonded over “intellectual curiosity, ideas and conversation, a shared love for science.” Heard continued, “We just bonded on a lot of things that speak to who I am on the inside… I have so much respect for him.” She added, “He’s not boring.”
March 1, 2019: Johnny Depp claims Amber Heard began a relationship with Elon Musk ‘one month’ into their marriage
Jeff Spicer/Getty; Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic; Tristar Media/WireImage
In Depp’s defamation lawsuit against Heard, the actorclaimed the actress began a relationship with the tech mogul"no later than one month after” she and Depp married in 2015.
May 27, 2022: Elon Musk weighs in on the Amber Heard-Johnny Depp defamation trial
Neilson Barnard/Getty; Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
During Heard and Depp’s defamation trial, the actress' agent Christian Carino, who at one point represented both actors for Creative Artists Agency, played his pre-recorded March 11 deposition in the courtroom, in which he spoke about what Heard confided in him about her relationship with billionaire Musk.
When discussing Heard’s breakup with Musk in August 2017, Carino recalled questioning why she was “sad” if she wasn’t “in love with him to begin with.” A lawyer for Depp read a text exchange between Carino and Heard in which she admitted thatshe was “just filling space” with Muskafter her Depp split.
Nov. 3, 2022: Amber Heard’s Twitter account vanishes after Elon Musk becomes CEO of the social media company
In the wake ofMusk’s takeover of Twitter, Heard’s account on the social media platformhas seemingly vanished.
Though the timing is unclear, multiple outlets took note on Nov. 3 that the actress' Twitter account, @realamberheard, has been deactivated. Ascreen on the page now reads, “This account doesn’t exist.”
source: people.com
