It has been both a great and crazy time to be a DC film fan. There have been many rumors and conflicting reports regarding Aquaman star Amber Heard's future in the DCEU, but don't believe everything you hear. Despite various earlier reports, Heard has not been cut from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom and her role as Mera is not being recast in the upcoming sequel. Heard's team has quickly come out to deny those reports.
A spokesperson for the actress told both Variety and The Independent that, "The rumor mill continues as it has from day one — inaccurate, insensitive and slightly insane.” This developing story comes just two weeks after a final verdict was reached in the lawsuit between Heard and her ex-husband Johnny Depp. It also comes the same week as Heard's first public interview since the trial. Warner Brothers hasn't officially commented on the matter yet.
Heard was found guilty and liable for $15 million in damages. During the testimony, the head of DC Films Walter Hamada said that WB had previously considered recasting the actress in the past and Heard herself was unsure if she was going to make the final cut of the film. Just Jared, which initially said Heard was being recast, claimed to have an inside source that stated, “Warner Bros. decided to recast Amber Heard’s role after screentesting the movie. They are going to be doing reshoots with Jason Momoa and Nicole Kidman.” However, like Heard's spokesperson said, that doesn't seem to be the case.
Aquaman 2 is currently set for a March 17, 2023 release and is deep into post-production. That's why it felt odd that WB would recast Heard this late in the game. The James Wan film is completely shot and has already been delayed once. It was supposed to release this December before moving to March of next year to help smooth the post-production crunch. Even if Heard was to be recast it wouldn't be something as simple as replacing a few dialogue scenes. Like Aquaman himself, there is a lot of rigging/wire work done with the character. Underwater battles are a key part of the franchise, and Mera was involved with almost all the big action set pieces the first time around.
Hopefully these constant rumors of Mera being recast can finally be put to bed. While we wait to see Heard and Momoa back in Atlantis for the Lost Kingdom next year, you can watch the first Aquaman on HBO Max right now.