Amber Heard has admitted to failing to pay her pledged $7 million donation, despite previously claiming to have paid the contribution.

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The Aquaman actor told the defamation trial she had failed to pay because of actions taken by her ex-husband, Johnny Depp.

Heard claimed she was yet to hand the funds over to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles because 'Johnny sued me for $50 million in March of 2019'.

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She added: "I fully intend to honour all of my pledges. I would love for him to stop suing me so I can."

Heard's admission comes after she has claimed several times to have already paid the entire settlement to charity.

The Aquaman star made the claim on-camera on Dutch talk show RTL Late Night back in 2018.

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"Seven million in total was donated. I split it between the ACLU and the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles," she told host John de Mol. "I wanted nothing."

She also made the claim under oath during the 2020 libel case against Depp in the UK.

ACLU Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel Terence Dougherty testified earlier in the current Depp/Heard legal drama, telling the court that only $1.3 million has been received from Heard or from someone on her behalf.

Dougherty said that in the wake of the pledge, the ACLU received $350,000 directly from Heard, $100,000 paid through Depp, $500,000 paid through a donor-advised fund and a further $350,000 also paid through a donor-advised fund, amounting to a total of $1.3 million ($AUD 1.8 million, £1 million).

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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk was connected to the donor-advised fund that contributed $850,000 to ACLU on behalf of Heard, and Dougherty told the court that, based on an email from Musk, it was believed the $3.5 million ($AUD 5 million, £2.8 million) would be paid to the charity over the course of 10 years, though the plan was never confirmed.

#AmberHeard said on Monday that she did not want #JohnnyDepp named or referenced in the allegedly defamatory op-ed drafted by the #ACLU. @LawCrimeNetwork pic.twitter.com/UgOzbIz7AW — Law&Crime Network (@LawCrimeNetwork) May 16, 2022

The court was shown documents, including a thank you note to Heard for her pledge, as well as a pledge form and a schedule regarding the donation.

The schedule was not signed by Heard but other documents indicate she was aware of the 10-year commitment, The Independent reports.

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The pledge came after Heard divorced Depp in 2016, at which point she said she would divide her $7 million settlement between the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).