Johnny Depp may be picking up at least $10 million for shooting precisely one scene in Fantastic Beasts 3 having signed a pay-or-play contract when he first boarded the franchise, but the actor’s career prospects have still taken another significant hit. The 57 year-old retains the support of his fans, though, who believe that he’s being unfairly treated by Warner Bros., especially when Amber Heard remains on board to play the female lead in the studio’s Aquaman 2.
While almost 250,000 people have signed a petition to have Depp reinstated as Pirates of the Caribbean‘s Jack Sparrow, over 800,000 have lent their weight to one demanding that his ex-wife be fired as the DCEU’s Mera. And given the series of revelations that were made public during the warring former couple’s court battles, Depp’s supporters have now threatened to boycott both Fantastic Beasts 3 and Aquaman 2 if Heard isn’t removed from James Wan’s superhero sequel.
Seeing as Warner Bros. are willing to fire Depp from one franchise, then surely they’re at least considering booting Heard from another, but it appears that for now, they’re only planning to reduce her role, something that the 34 year-old actress isn’t too happy with. In fact, according to insider Daniel Richtman, she’s fighting for an increased part in the pic.
“Heard wants and fighting for bigger role in Aquaman 2 since they are trying to reduce her role,” says the tipster.
Mera was hardly a fully-formed or three-dimensional character in the original film, and Heard’s performance wasn’t memorable in the slightest, but despite a lot of modern blockbusters focusing more time and energy on prominent female parts, the continued negativity swirling around her mere existence more than likely means that Warner Bros. aren’t going to acquiesce to Amber’s requests. If she even remains on board by the time Aquaman 2 starts shooting next year, that is.