Actress Amber Heard claims that Warner Bros. scaled back her role as Mera in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Heard first appeared as Mera in Zack Snyder's Justice League, before moving on to a more prominent role in James Wan's solo feature, Aquaman. Starring Jason Momoa as the titular character, as well as Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Willem Dafoe, and Nicole Kidman, Heard was featured prominently in Aquaman, almost as a co-lead.
Shortly after her divorce from actor Johnny Depp, Heard wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post that suggested Depp abused her during their relationship, which spawned a number of lawsuits from Depp, including a libel lawsuit against The Sun, which he lost. Depp then sued Heard for defamation, which is currently in trial proceedings. Heard received backlash for her op-ed, which later had fans petition to have her removed from the Aquaman sequel. The actress was brought back for the film, although now it appears that it won't be anywhere near as prominent a role as it was the first time around.
While on the stand today, Heard testified (via CBS News) that Warner Bros. originally did not want the actress back in the part. Heard says she "fought really hard" to be in the film and that she had been given multiple scripts, with subsequent versions taking away scenes with her character, including action sequences. The actress's role in Aquaman 2 is apparently "pared down" with Heard saying on the stand:
Lawyer: Have you participated in Aquaman 2?
Heard: I have.
Lawyer: And tell us about that.
Heard: I had to fight to--I fought really hard to stay in the movie. They didn’t want to include me in the film.
Lawyer: Were you ultimately able to film in Aquaman 2?
Heard: A very pared down version of that role, yes.
Lawyer: What if anything changed in the script?
Heard: I was given a script. And then given new versions of the script that had taken away scenes that had action in it, that depicted my character and another character, without giving spoilers away, two characters fighting with one another. They basically took a bunch out of my role. They just removed a bunch.
Heard recently appeared in Zack Snyder's Justice League when it was released on HBO Max last year, showing up in additional scenes not in the original theatrical version of the film. While the fan petition to have her removed gained steam when her legal troubles began (it currently has 4.1 million signatures), producers for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom stated that they wouldn't react to fan pressure when it came to bringing Heard back for the sequel, saying that they had to "do what's right for the film" even if they're aware of the controversy. As a result, Heard was brought back, despite the online furor, and shared images of her preparation, as well as a few bts images while working on the sequel.
Regardless of how the defamation trial between Heard and Depp plays out, both actors have continued to face public scrutiny over their very public trial. Depp has already lost out on both the Fantastic Beasts role of Grindelwald, as well as a sixth outing in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Now, it appears that the pendulum has swing in Heard's direction, as WB already has enough fires to put out with The Flash star Ezra Miller, as well as dealing with their new shake-up with the Discovery merger, which is already shaking things up on their TV and theatrical slate. With Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom already delayed into 2023 anything could happen in terms of how much or how little (or at all) Mera appears in the final cut.
Source: CBS News
