Will Amber Heard Be in "Aquaman 2"?

Will Amber Heard Be in "Aquaman 2"?
The highly anticipated sequel to the 2018 film "Aquaman" is already garnering plenty of buzz from fans of the movie and the general media — not only for shirtless Jason Momoa or the storyline, however. "Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom," has been in the works since the overwhelming success of the first film in 2018, but a major court battle involving Amber Heard, who appeared in "Aquaman" as the powerful Princess Mera (the love interest of Aquaman), and Johnny Depp has many wondering about her future in the film, which is set to release in 2023.

Why Are Johnny Depp and Amber Heard Suing Each Other?
At the time of "Aquaman"'s release in December 2018, Heard and Depp had recently wrapped up their highly publicized divorce proceedings. By all accounts, the relationship was volatile. When Heard filed for divorce in 2016, she filed a temporary restraining order against Depp, claiming he had been abusive toward her throughout their relationship. She then authored a Washington Post op-ed titled "I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture's wrath. That has to change," published days before "Aquaman"'s December 2018 release. Though Disney did not cite the op-ed or Heard's accusations as the reason, the studio dropped Depp from their major franchise "Pirates of the Caribbean" shortly after the op-ed's release. Depp then sued Heard for defamation, accusing her of causing his career irreparable harm by implicating him as her domestic abuser in the essay (Depp claims he never physically abused Heard). Heard countersued, claiming Depp and his legal team defamed her by calling her abuse claims a "hoax."

The trial kicked off in mid-April, with both Depp and Heard bringing evidence, including audio of their volatile fights at the time of their relationship, as evidence. On June 1, a Virginia jury found Heard liable for defamation on all three of the statements made about Depp in her op-ed. Depp was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $350,000 in punitive damages. Depp was found liable for defamation for one of Waldman's "hoax" statements, for which Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages and $0 in punitive damages.

The evidence presented in the trial and, ultimately, the verdict painted a polarizing picture, causing some following it to accuse Heard of domestic abuse as well and demand her removal from the "Aquaman" franchise.

What Is Amber Heard's Role in "Aquaman 2"?
In the course of Heard's countersuit for defamation against Depp, entertainment industry consultant Catherine Arnold revealed what the extent of Heard's role in "Aquaman 2" once was (according to Heard). Throughout her testimony, Arnold claimed Heard revealed the first version of the script saw Mera, in a "strong romantic arc" throughout the entire film. "She also got to do some great action sequences at the end of that storyline and that script. So she was featured predominantly throughout the script of 'Aquaman 2' when she first read it," Arnold testified in court (via Cosmic Book).

According to Arnold's testimony, Heard claimed her role was significantly reduced amid the controversy surrounding her and Depp's legal battle. "When she got the script, it was pared down from the first script, dramatically, they had her in the hospital in the first part of the movie called Act 1, they had her in the hospital, then they pretty much had her in the hospital, then she was going to do this action sequence in the end," Arnold explained. "She trained five hours a day for several months with a trainer to do this big action sequence, and then when she got to set . . . this big action sequence she was going to do at the end of the movie in the third act was cut out and they took it away from her. So it was radically reduced in the script from what it was . . ."

At one point, Arnold made mention of Mera being in the hospital and having a baby, but it's unclear if this aspect of the script will be in the final cut. Arnold testified she has not seen the final movie.

Will Amber Heard Be in "Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom"?
Production for "Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom" started in June 2021 and finished production in January 2022, with Heard on board to reprise her role as Mera. During the beginning stages of production, growing outrage over Heard's appearance in the film grew, with many following the legal proceedings between Depp and Heard showing disappointment with the decision to keep her in the cast. The film's producer, Peter Safran, responded to the increasing pressure to fire Heard in July 2021, telling Deadline, "One is not unaware of what is going on in the Twitter-verse, but that doesn't mean you have to react to it or take it as gospel or accede to their wishes. You have to do what's right for the film, and that's really where we landed on it."

While Safran and the rest of the film's crew appeared to remain unfazed by the public's perspective on the Heard/Depp allegations of abuse, disapproval of their decision grew in number. A Change.org petition, which was initially started in 2020, is calling for Heard to be removed from the film for her alleged abusive behavior toward Depp while the pair were married. The petition has reached nearly 4.5 million signatures.

The producers of "Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom," including Peter Safran, have yet to address the petition, or Heard's involvement in the film since the start of the defamation trial. Rumors of her screen time in the film have been circulating, however. On April 30, 2022, TMZ reported the actor will have less than 10 minutes of screen time in the sequel, though the report has not been confirmed by anyone with direct ties to the film. In addition, a connection between Heard's alleged screen time and the ongoing trial has not been established, so even if it is true, it may not have anything to do with the ongoing trial.

Currently, it appears Heard will remain in "Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom," whether for just 10 minutes or longer, when the movie hits theaters on March 17, 2023.

Amber Heard No Longer Appearing In Aquaman 2, According to New Rumor

Amber Heard No Longer Appearing In Aquaman 2, According to New Rumor

According to reliable insider KC Walsh, Amber Heard's scenes as Mera are set to be deleted from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom following a meeting between Warner Bros. higher-ups. Walsh's rumor suggests Mera may die during childbirth at the start of the sequel, but its upcoming test screening will be telling.

Heard admitted during the trial against Johnny Depp that her role had already been cut after being a leading star in the first film.

Will Aquaman 2 Suffer Without Mera?

According to reliable insider KC Walsh, Amber Heard's scenes as Mera are set to be deleted from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom following a meeting between Warner Bros. higher-ups. Walsh's rumor suggests Mera may die during childbirth at the start of the sequel, but its upcoming test screening will be telling.

Heard admitted during the trial against Johnny Depp that her role had already been cut after being a leading star in the first film.

Warner Bros. Considered Replacing Amber Heard in ‘Aquaman 2’

The president of DC Films testified Tuesday that the studio considered replacing Amber Heard for “Aquaman 2” out of concern that she lacked chemistry with star Jason Momoa.

Heard was ultimately cast in the sequel, but her lawyers have argued that she nearly lost the job and could not renegotiate for more money due to the backlash over her domestic abuse allegations against Johnny Depp. Heard is seeking $100 million in a defamation counterclaim against Depp.

Walter Hamada, the head of Warner Bros.’ DC unit, was the first witness called by Depp’s side as they begin their rebuttal of Heard’s counterclaim in court in Fairfax, Va. Appearing by video deposition, Hamada testified that the abuse allegations played no role in casting decisions in “Aquaman 2.”

However, he said the studio did delay picking up its option for several weeks as it considered whether to recast the role of Mera, who was Aquaman’s love interest in the first film.

“They didn’t have a lot of chemistry together,” Hamada said. “Editorially they were able to make that relationship work in the first movie, but there was a concern that it took a lot of effort to get there.”

Hamada said that the chemistry was created in post-production, using “movie magic,” including the film’s score. He said it is not uncommon for two leads to lack chemistry.

“You know it when you see it, and the chemistry wasn’t there,” he said.

Heard was paid $1 million for the first “Aquaman,” and $2 million for the sequel. That pay was consistent with her original contract, but Heard’s agent has testified that she should have been able to renegotiate for more money due to the global success of the first film. However, Hamada testified that under his leadership at DC Films, he has made a point of not automatically renegotiating for sequels.

“A big part of our philosophy was we were going to hold people to their options,” he said.

Hamada said that “Aquaman 2” — due out next year — was conceived as a “buddy comedy” between Momoa and Patrick Wilson, who plays King Orm, Aquaman’s half-brother. Heard has alleged that her role was “pared down” considerably over time, but Hamada testified it has remained static since the film was first developed in 2018.

Heard’s team has contended that she lost out on at least one other role — an Amazon film with Gael Garcia Bernal — as well as lucrative endorsement deals due to the online campaign against her over her abuse allegations against Depp.

AMBER HEARD SAID TO BE DELETED FROM 'AQUAMAN' 2

AMBER HEARD SAID TO BE DELETED FROM 'AQUAMAN' 2
Following the Johnny Depp trial, it's now claimed that Amber Heard has been completely dropped from Aquaman 2.

Consider it a rumor for now, but the info comes from a pretty reliable scooper via Twitter who claims to have been in contact with a source who says a meeting at WB was recently held which saw it said all of Amber Heard's scenes as Mera in Aquaman 2 will be deleted.

The trial saw the jury award Johnny Depp in his defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard an amount of $15 million with it said Heard acted with malice and that her accusations were false.

Amber Heard is done as Mera
During the trial, it also came out that Amber Heard only has a small part as Mera in Aquaman 2, appearing at the beginning and the end of the flick, so if Heard is in the film for only around ten minutes or so, it wouldn't be that hard to delete all the Mera scenes as it sounds as if Heard only has a minor role that basically means nothing for the sequel.

It also came out that earlier drafts of the script had a much larger role for Mera where she was supposed to have a romantic arc with star Jason Momoa and appear in a big battle scene at the end of the movie, but the head of DC films, Walter Hamada, testified that following the first Aquaman movie, due to Amber Heard having bad chemistry with Momoa, that Heard's role has been reduced in Aquaman 2. Heard at first made it sound as if it was Johnny Depp's fault she saw her role reduced in Aquaman 2 and that she was released from her Aquaman contract because of Depp, but Hamada rebutted all that, said Heard has no chemistry with Momoa and that she was never released from her contract.

What I think really happened is that Heard fulfilled her Aquaman contract and then it ended (she was never released, meaning fired), but Heard spun things like she was released from it in order to make Johnny Depp look bad, which isn't the case. Regardless, with Heard fulfilling her contract, it means her contract is now over and also that it hasn't been renewed, which means whatever happens with Aquaman 2, Amber Heard is done as Mera and with the DC universe.

Amber Heard likely deleted from Aquaman 2
Also as I tweeted, there has been what I think is a fake account on Instagram run by a "Juliette Lauren Fischer" who claims to be a Warner Bros. Discovery executive that people are using as proof or a source about rumors surrounding Amber Heard and Aquaman 2, but I think it's was just created by a wacky Depp stan. I contacted WB about the account and rumors a couple of weeks ago, but never got a reply; however, the account is now deleted, so again, I think it was fake created by a Depp fan.

Regarding Amber Heard getting deleted from Aquaman 2, I think it is definitely a possibility because she lost at trial and there now happens to be over 4.5 million votes to remove her from the movie. I think if the outcome of the trial was more in favor of Heard, her ten minutes would have appeared in Aquaman 2, but again, she lost big time at trial, so she's likely deleted from Aquaman 2 as a result. If WB holds more test screenings, look for leaks to verify the info.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is directed by James Wan and has a March 17, 2023 release date also starring Patrick Wilson and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.