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News of the “Aquaman” sequel beginning its filming process has faced severe backlash on Twitter due to the inclusion of Amber Heard as a cast member. The actress plays “Mera,” the love interest to Arthur Curry (aka Aquaman, played by Jason Momoa).
Amber Heard has been in controversy due to her alleged domestic abuse case with Johnny Depp.
Aquaman director James Wan (also of “The Conjuring” fame) shared the “Day One” set photo of “Aquaman 2” as the shooting began. However, tweets about boycotting the film came pouring in as Amber Heard was not replaced as Mera.
The controversy stemmed from the 35-year-old Amber Heard alleging that the “Pirates of the Carribean” star abused and assaulted her. This was followed by a long and ongoing lawsuit which resulted in Depp losing out on several major roles in multiple franchises.
These included Disney’s franchise mentioned above and Warner Brothers’ Harry Potter spin-off, the “Fantastic Beasts” series.
While the controversy has been continuing, fans were shocked when in May 2020, Warner Bros confirmed that “Another Round” star Mads Mikkelsen would replace Johnny Depp in “Fantastic Beasts 3” as Grindelwald.
The legendary actor’s supporters felt that this was unjust on him, as in January 2020, phone recordings were released where Amber Heard admitted to “hitting” Johnny.
Fans of both the DCEU franchise (of which Aquaman is a part of) and the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise have been campaigning on Twitter to have Amber Heard fired.
Twitter storm as fire Amber Heard trends
Since the news of Aquaman 2’s production started, fans have been campaigning on Twitter about boycotting the film if the Austin native is not removed as Mera.
In a recent interview with The Times, “Hannibal” star Mads Mikkelsen said:
“I didn’t have a dog in that fight. And I don’t know what happened (in his private life), and I don’t know if it was fair, him losing the job, but I just knew that the show was going on, and I would’ve loved to have talked to him about it if I had the chance, but I just don’t know him in that sense.”
Meanwhile, in July 2020, Johnny Depp’s exes Winona Ryder and Vanessa Paradis stated in a London court on his behalf.
“Stranger Things” star Ryder said:
“I do not want to call anyone a liar, but from my experience of Johnny, it is impossible to believe that such horrific allegations are true. I find it extremely upsetting knowing him as I do.”
Meanwhile, Paradis, who has two children with Johnny Depp, shared:
“Through all of these years, I’ve known Johnny to be a kind, attentive, generous, and non-violent person.”
Aquaman, released in 2018, grossed over $1.1 billion in the global box office. So, a potential boycott from a significant number of fans is not something that Warner Brothers can afford, especially in the post-pandemic industry.
