Heard has previously claimed she had to 'fight really hard' to stay in the movie
Amber Heard's talent agent has claimed that the actress was close to being axed from the
Aquaman sequel, but that this was nothing to do with pressure from Johnny Depp fans.
For months, many fans have been calling for Heard to be removed from the DC film because of her bitter and protracted legal dispute with her former husband Depp.
On Thursday, Heard's WME agent Jessica Kovacevic testified as part of the multi-million dollar defamation trial between the two. She claimed that it was in fact Heard's lack of chemistry with Jason Momoa that almost saw her axed from the film (roughly 5 minutes into the video below)
In the pre-recorded deposition, Kovacevic said Heard should have had much more success following the release of
Aquaman in late 2018.
She also told the court that she believed Warner Bros. wanted her out of the franchise due to the bad publicity stemming from her legal battle with Depp,
Entertainment Weekly reports.
The agent said the studio didn't "want to hire someone who has bad press,” adding: “No one wants that association.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utXDmuvG6Nk
A petition calling for Heard to be removed from
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has so far racked up almost 4.3 million signatures.
The actress has already told the court that
she had to fight "really hard" to stay in the
Aquaman 2, in which she plays Atlantean princess Mera.
She admitted that despite this, she has still ended up with a "very pared-down version" of the role, with reports suggesting she only features in the film for as little as 10 minutes.
But producer Peter Safran has previously rebuked ideas of removing Heard, telling
Deadline: "I don't think that we're ever going to react to just pure fan pressure.
"Because, you know, you've gotta do what you feel is best for the movie."
He added: "We felt that if it's James Wan and Jason Momoa, it should be Amber Heard. And that's really what it was."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1gA2Us0vKs
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is directed by James Wan and was initially slated for a December 2022 release but has since been pushed back to March 17, 2023.
Depp is currently suing his former wife Heard for defamation over an op-ed she wrote in 2018 in which she discussed the subject of domestic abuse.
Depp and his lawyers argue that the
Washington Post piece falsely implies that Heard was physically and sexually abused by Depp while they were married from 2015 to 2017. He is seeking $50m in damages.
Heard is in turn suing her former husband, accusing him of orchestrating a "smear campaign" against her and labelling his lawsuit as a continuation of "abuse and harassment."
She has asked for immunity from Depp's complaint, and $100m in damages.
The court is now in its fifth week of hearing the case with closing arguments set to take place on May 27. It will then be up to the jury to decide the outcome.
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