Why Amber Heard was really almost fired from ‘Aquaman 2’: agent
Outspoken DC Comics fans almost got their wish for Amber Heard to be fired from the upcoming “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” according to her talent agent.
Viewers have petitioned Warner Bros. for months to remove Heard from the superhero film sequel amid her controversial defamation trial with ex-husband Johnny Depp.
Heard’s WME agent, Jessica Kovacevic, testified Thursday during the trial that Warner Bros. claimed it was Heard’s “lack of chemistry” with her “Aquaman” co-star Jason Momoa that almost got her canned.
Kovacevic also discussed the 36-year-old’s career before and after her relationship with Depp, 58, saying Heard should have become a major star after “Aquaman,” which premiered in late 2018 and grossed over $1 billion.
In her pre-recorded deposition, the agent addressed “online rumors” that Warner Bros. wanted to replace Heard, and also said she believed the studio wanted her out as Princess Mera due to the bad publicity stemming from the contentious court case.
Kovacevic noted that in her opinion, the studio didn’t “want to hire someone who has bad press,” adding, “No one wants that association.”
This comes after “Never Back Down” actress Heard alleged earlier this week during the trial that she “had to fight really hard to keep my career” amid her battle with the “Dark Shadows” actor.
“I lost opportunities. I got dropped from jobs and campaigns. I fought to keep my job and the biggest movie opportunity I had to date [with] ‘Justice League’ with the option to [star in] ‘Aquaman,’ ” she said.
“I had to fight really hard to stay in ‘Justice League’ because that was the time of the divorce,” Heard added. The ex-couple were married from 2015 until 2017.
She allegedly only has about 10 minutes of screen time in the sequel, out in March 2023.
Warner Bros. has not responded to requests for comment about Kovacevic and Heard’s comments. Meanwhile, the aforementioned petition to oust Heard was published in 2020 and has since garnered almost 4.3 million signatures.
Follow The Post’s live coverage of the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial
Heard also confirmed during the trial that the studio drastically cut down her role, noting they “didn’t want to include me.”
She explained that she was “actively scheduling timing for filming” the action flick until Depp’s legal team reportedly launched a smear campaign against her.
Heard pointed out in her testimony that “communications” about the film “stopped at that point.”
“I was given a script and then given new versions of the script that had taken away scenes that had action in it, that depicted my character and another character, without giving any spoilers away, two characters fighting with one another, and they basically took a bunch out of my role,” she told the Fairfax, Virginia, courtroom. “They just removed a bunch out.”
