As you may have heard by now, rumors and reports are swirling that Amber Heard won’t be involved in Aquaman 2, after all. Despite ongoing legal troubles with ex-husband Johnny Depp, the Mera actress confirmed that she was planning to return for the DC sequel last year. Recent intel from multiple sources points to the studio wanting to get rid of the star, however.
There are various new revelations about the situation coming out all the time, though, and just recently we heard that she still remains on board the project, but her position is by no means secured. Where the truth lies remains to be seen, but the latest rumor, shared by insider Daniel Richtman on his Patreon page, says that James Wan is fighting with WB to keep Heard in the production as Mera.
That’s all we know for the moment, but it makes sense that Wan would stick by his leading actress like this, even if it was Zack Snyder who first cast Heard as the Atlantean princess in Justice League. Indeed, battles between the filmmakers and the studio are also a common problem over at WB these days, after the likes of Christopher Nolan, Denis Villeneuve and more voiced their displeasure with them of late.
Reports point to Heard having failed her physical due to poor health and fitness ahead of filming kicking off, which apparently contravenes a clause in her contract. Furthermore, they say that Warner Bros. is either looking to replace her with another known name – like Emilia Clarke – or else drastically reduce her screen time. It has to be said, though, that Heard’s representatives have responded to the claims and have “categorically denied” that there’s any truth to them.
Still, that hasn’t stopped rumors going around that point to big problems behind the scenes on the Jason Momoa-fronted follow-up. You’d have to imagine that the studio would’ve had enough of the bad press the actress is generating for them by this stage, whether warranted or not, but it seems that she at least has James Wan in her corner to help her keep her place in the DCEU and Aquaman 2.
