Amber Heard will appear in Aquaman sequel Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom alongside Jason Momoa later this year, though she is only seen briefly in the trailer – which was released on 14 September.
The movie, which follows on from the original film centred around Arthur Curry (or Aquaman, played by Momoa) and Mera (portrayed by Heard), will this time focus more on the relationship between Aquaman and his brother Orm (Patrick Wilson), leaving Amber with a smaller role.
We investigate.
The actor has previously claimed that her part in the sequel was minimised because of the media attention surrounding her legal battles against her ex-husband Johnny Depp. During the 2022 defamation trial Johnny brought against her, she said: “I was given a script and then given new versions of the script that had taken away scenes that had action in it… they basically took a bunch out of my role.”
Other testimony suggested that her part was reduced due to the fact that Jason and Amber didn't have the best chemistry on-screen during the first film, but since then director James Wan has had his own say on the sequel.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, he claimed that he had always planned for Mera to appear less in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. He said: “I always pitched this to everyone from the get-go. The first Aquaman was Arthur and Mera's journey. The second movie was always going to be Arthur and Orm. So, the first was a romance action-adventure movie, the second one is a bromance action-adventure movie. We'll leave it at that.”
The trailer – which features Amber Heard for just a second as she punches through a glass window as Mera – continues the narrative that the movie will focus on Aquaman and Orm, as they team up to try and defeat villain Black Manta.
The plotline reads: “Having failed to defeat Aquaman the first time, Black Manta, still driven by the need to avenge his father’s death, will stop at nothing to take Aquaman down once and for all. This time Black Manta is more formidable than ever before, wielding the power of the mythic Black Trident, which unleashes an ancient and malevolent force. To defeat him, Aquaman will turn to his imprisoned brother Orm, the former King of Atlantis, to forge an unlikely alliance. Together, they must set aside their differences in order to protect their kingdom and save Aquaman’s family, and the world, from irreversible destruction.”
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will be released in cinemas in the UK on December 20, 2023.
It's the actor's first major project release in the aftermath of the Johnny Depp defamation trial.
