Heard told the jury that she wasn't sure if she would make the final cut for the role of Mera, which was cut from the movie. Heard's apparent departure from the DCEU will leave the character of Mera, who it would seem was being set-up for a larger and larger presence in the Aquaman series as the Queen of Atlantis. There is doubt as to the level of involvement of the Atlantean hero in the sequel.
While Warner Bros. and DC have yet to speak on the current controversy surrounding Amber Heard, they did previously confirm that the actress would return to play the role of Mera in the upcoming film, "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom." Heard said that Warner Bros. came close to cutting her out of the sequel entirely, and that she had to fight hard to remain part of the cast. The logic behind the petition was that since both Heard and Depp had accused the other of domestic abuse, they should lose out on high-profile franchise movie roles.
During recent testimony in the civil trial involving her and Johnny Depp, the first information on Mera's role in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was revealed. Heard confirmed on the witness stand that her initial contract covered three film appearances, including Justice League, as well as a British-accented version of the film. The petition was created after Johnny Depp was asked to give up the role of Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. Peter Saffron, the producer of Lost Kingdom, said that the decision to bring Heard back was not influenced by the petition and other efforts to get her removed. In Justice League, Heard showed the character on the big screen for the first time, before returning with a different look in the film. Heard was almost cut from the sequel due to concerns that she didn't have enough chemistry with her co-star.
Ahead of the start of Heard and Depp's defamation trial, a deposition surfaced that revealed something interesting about Heard's return as Mera in the sequel. Heard was not allowed to negotiate a pay increase for her second go-around as Mera, a fairly standard practice when signing on for a sequel to a massive box office hit. It's interesting to learn that the studio had concerns about Heard's return that weren't related to her personal life. It would likely lead to backlash from those who support Heard, so perhaps inventing a new love interest for Arthur Curry would be the better move. A rare glimpse into the structure of her contract with Warner Bros. and DC was offered to the general public by Heard. Warner Bros.' decision to not sign Heard to a new contract for further DC appearances was related to Heard's personal controversies. Heard's contract with the DCEU was fulfilled by her work on the sequel.
Over 4 million people have signed a petition demanding that Warner Bros. fire Heard from Aquaman 2. According to Heard and reports circulating in the pop culture landscape, here's what appears to be the case.
In the years since, Heard has become more well-known for her personal life than her acting career.
One topic that was not expected to come up during the trial was Mera's role in the movie. For now, nothing is certain about Heard's appearance in the sequel. Currently, Heard is in a very public trial in which she's attempting to defend herself against accusations of defamation by ex-husband and fellow Hollywood star Johnny Depp.