Following the verdict of the Johnny Depp Vs. Amber Heard defamation case, insider KC Walsh has noted that Warner Bros. Pictures is set to delete Heard’s scenes as Mera from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
Per Yahoo!, a meeting between higher-ups was recently held to make the decision of removing Heard from the Aquaman sequel.
I didn’t think they would but sounds like they are, the next test screening should be interesting pic.twitter.com/ZjR60XxDCZ
— KC Walsh (@TheComixKid) June 3, 2022
Heard filmed most of her scenes in London back in Fall 2021 and her removal could be explained by an off-screen death. Rumors suggest that her character could die during childbirth at the start of the sequel to keep her completely out of the film. The move is expected to help keep any negative press away from the installment in the DC Extended Universe set to arrive in March of next year.
As we earlier reported, fans made a petition calling for Heard to be removed from the upcoming Aquaman 2 movie, reaching nearly 5 million signatures. The Change.org petition started back in December 2019, months after Depp first sued his ex-wife, but the campaign has seen renewed support due to the trial.
Warner Bros. is already dealing with publicity problems with The Flash‘s Ezra Miller, who keeps getting arrested for altercations in Hawaii. However, since he’s the star of the DC film, they can’t write him out of that, with the release date slated for June 23, 2023.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is now expected to open in theaters on March 17, 2023.