Johnny Depp and Amber Heard
U.S. actors Johnny Depp (L) and Amber Heard pose for photographers during a photo-call for the film "The Rum Diary" in Paris Nov. 8, 2011. Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes

Johnny Depp and girlfriend Amber Heard are apparently engaged, as the blonde beauty was reportedly spotted with a dazzling sparkler on her left ring finger. Some find the engagement rumor hard to believe; he and Heard have been together for about a year but Depp never got down on one knee for Vanessa Paradis, his girlfriend of 14 years and the mother of his children.

Us Magazine unearthed a 2010 Extra interview where Depp explained that he never felt the need to marry his French lover Paradis, 41, who is the mother of his two kids, Lily Rose and Jack. "I never found myself needing that piece of paper," the 50-year-old Depp said. "Marriage is really from soul to soul, heart to heart. You don't need somebody to say, OK you're married."

Though getting hitched wasn’t one of his top priorities, Depp did say he would have walked down the aisle with Paradis if she wanted that. "If Vanessa wanted to get hitched, why not," Depp said. "But the thing is, I'd be so scared of ruining her last name. She's got such a good last name."

The actor blamed the failed relationship on their hectic schedules. "Relationships are very difficult," he told Rolling Stone in July 2013. "Especially in the racket that I'm in because you're constantly away or they're away and so it's hard. It wasn't easy on her. It wasn't easy on me. It wasn't easy on the kids."

"So, yeah," he continued. "The trajectory of that relationship -- you play it out until it goes, one thing leads to another. So for whatever reason that ­ceases, it doesn't stop the fact that you care for that person, and they're the mother of your kids, and you'll always know each other, and you're always gonna be in each other's lives because of those kids. You might as well make the best of it."

As for Depp’s current relationship, the couple has reportedly been engaged for some time but Heard only told “close friends,” according to a source who spoke to People magazine. “Of course they couldn’t be happier to be engaged and excited to share the rest of their lives together. Amber has really taken well to the kids and really enjoys spending time with them. And she’s even taken Lily shopping on her own for some bonding time.”

A source told Celebuzz that the engagement "happened on Christmas Eve,” adding: “Amber really took her time to make up her mind.”

Just because Depp is engaged to Heard doesn’t mean the “Public Enemy” star is ready to wed, however. He’s previously been engaged to actresses Jennifer Grey, Sherilyn Fenn and Winona Ryder and was once married to Lori Anne Allison.

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