“This Was Always My Plan.” Aquaman 2’s Director Addressed Amber Heard’s Controversy

As the long-lasting trial between Amber Heard and Johnny Depp reached its conclusion with the latter’s triumph, fans have been raiding social media platforms to pressure, or even threaten Aquaman 2’s crew to drop Heard, or at least reduce her role significantly in the sequel. In fact, the actress barely appears in the trailers or any marketing attempts of Warner Bros.

James Wan is very well aware of the situation. In a recent interview with Empire Magazine via The Direct, the veteran director acknowledged the fact that he intentionally gave Heard a much smaller role in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. However, as Wan explained, the reason behind this decision had nothing to do with the actress’s case.

"It’s fair that [Heard] said that [about the character being pared down], because she wasn’t in my head as I was working on this movie. Actors don’t necessarily know what we [directors] behind the scenes are thinking about. But this was always my plan.,” Wan answered Empire Magazine.

“From the start, I pitched that the first film would be a 'Romancing The Stone'-type thing — an action-adventure romantic comedy — while the second would be an outright buddy comedy. I wanted to do 'Tango & Cash!'" He continued.

There was a lot of controversy surrounding the Heard-Depp case back then, with the majority of public opinion against the actress. According to a report by Variety, Heard’s time at the Aquaman 2’s set was hellish. 

She was taunted by a drunk Jason Momoa on set, who dressed up as Heard’s ex-husband Johnny Depp to try to get her fired from the movie. Heard was also scolded by James Wan himself, and the director didn’t even allow anyone to take photos with her at the time. These were all used as part of the defamation trial by Heard’s therapist. However, DC publicly denied all these claims.

Variety also reported that initially Heard was almost fired from Aquaman 2 as well. After the first movie hit theaters, Wan and Warner Bros. didn’t want the actress to return due to a “lack of chemistry” between her and Jason Momoa. 

However, Heard still managed to keep her role, as her boyfriend at the time, Elon Musk, reached out and threatened the film’s crew, claiming that he would “scorch the Earth” if Wan didn’t bring Heard back. As a result, Heard was back as Mera, but at least two important scenes of her were reportedly cut from the sequel.

How many minutes do you think Amber Heard would get in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom? Is James Wan right to reduce her screen time? Let us know in the comments.