Despite widespread rumors about Amber Heard being fired from Aquaman 2 over the weekend, reports indicate that the actor remains a part of the upcoming sequel to the 2018 blockbuster as the film's female lead, Mera.
There was an unverified report on a YouTube site that Heard was going to be replaced by Game of Thrones' Emilia Clarke due to violating the health and fitness clauses in her contract for the upcoming DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film. That report quickly spread throughout the internet, leading to "Amber Heard" trending on social media with fans reacting to the rumors. However, Ryan Parker, Senior Staff Writer for The Hollywood Reporter, reported, "Told by a reliable source that reports of Amber Heard being fired off 'Aquaman 2' are inaccurate."
Heard is a controversial figure in fandom due to the ongoing legal battle between the actor and her ex-husband, former Fantastic Beasts star, Johnny Depp, over claims that the Aquaman star made that the former Pirates of the Caribbean actor was physically abusive towards her during their tumultuous, short-lived marriage.
Heard wrote a piece for the Washington Post in late 2018 describing Depp's abuse and Depp sued her for defamation in early 2019, seeking $50 million in damages, as he believed that the claims of abuse led to Disney declining to include Depp in their upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean reboot. After failing to get the suit dismissed, Heard then countersued with her own defamation suit, seeking $100 million in damages. Recently, Depp lost a related defamation suit in the United Kingdom where he sued a British newspaper for repeating Heard's claims in an article. The judge in the case ruled that the facts supported refering to Depp as a "wife-beater." As a result, Depp was then fired from the upcoming Fantastic Beasts sequel.
A number of fans, though, believe Depp's side of the story that it was Heard who was the abusive one in the marriage, not him. A petition to remove Heard from Aquaman 2 received over a million signatures last year. Heard replied to the news of the peition in November, explaining, "I'm super excited about the amount of fan love and the amount of fan appreciation that Aquaman has acquired and that it has garnered so much excitement for Aquaman and Mera that it means we'll be coming back. I'm so excited to film that. Paid rumors and paid campaigns on social media don't dictate [casting decisions] because they have no basis in reality. Only the fans actually made Aquaman and Aquaman 2 happen. I'm excited to get started next year."
Source: Twitter