A recent bid to have Amber Heard removed from her role as Mera in the upcoming Aquaman 2 has just passed 220,000 signatures. And while that’s a shockingly big number in and of itself, it’s even more shocking when you remember that it was only a few days ago that it hit 140,000.
Ever since the lawsuit between Heard and her ex-husband Johnny Depp made headlines, fans have been furiously sifting though the evidence and allegations, trying to determine who’s in the right and who’s in the wrong. Things took an explosive turn this week, however, when an incriminating audio recording surfaced that had Heard admitting to physically abusing Depp.
Since then, the tide has dramatically shifted, with fans calling for justice for Johnny and demanding that Amber be removed from future projects. This petition is just one of many that’s sprung up in recent months but it’s by far the biggest, and here’s an excerpt from it, explaining why Heard should be replaced in Aquaman 2.
“Amber Heard has been exposed as a domestic abuser by Johnny Depp. In his $50 million lawsuit, Johnny Depp describes many incidents of domestic abuse that he suffered at the hands of his (then) wife Amber Heard, including one incident where she punched him twice in the face and another where she shattered his finger with a vodka bottle, and his finger had to be surgically reattached. He will bear the scar from that for the rest of his life.
Since Heard’s divorce from Johnny Depp, she has systematically crusaded to ruin Depp in Hollywood, repeating multiple accounts of fake incidents in which she had actually abused Johnny Depp, but lied and created false accounts of him being the abuser.
As Amber Heard is a known and proven domestic abuser, Warner Brothers and DC Entertainment should and must remove Heard from their Aquaman 2 film project. They must not ignore the suffering of Heard’s victims, and must not glamorize a domestic abuser. Men are victims of domestic abuse, just like women. This must be recognized, and action must be taken to prevent a known abuser from being celebrated within the entertainment industry.
Do the right thing. Remove Amber Heard from Aquaman 2.”
To be fair, a lot of what’s said above is true and has been proven as such, but Depp isn’t entirely innocent in this whole thing. The actor has been accused of “meritlessly bullying” Heard and also beating her on several occasions. Then again, the Pirates of the Caribbean star has claimed that his ex-wife “painted on” bruises to fool the court. So really, who knows?
Clearly, the whole thing’s an absolute mess and likely won’t reach any kind of sound resolution for a while yet, which doesn’t bode well for either star’s career. But as of now, it doesn’t seem like the Hollywood studios are being influenced by fan demands, with Depp still holding onto his role in the Fantastic Beasts series and Heard scheduled to reprise Mera in the upcoming Aquaman 2. Should either of those things change, though, we’ll be sure to let you know.
