As one of the less-popular heroes in the DC universe pantheon, Aquaman had a lot of hurdles to overcome in its road to release. Yet, despite all the stumbles of the DC Extended Universe and the decades of jokes at the expense of Aquaman himself, the film turned out to be a surprise hit, finding a huge fanbase, particularly in China, which helped to push the film over the $1 billion dollar mark at the box office and guarantee a sequel.
While that's great news for the DC universe and Jason Momoa's version of Aquaman, there has been yet another controversy kicked up over the character of Mera, who was played by Amber Heard in Aquaman as well as Justice League and is currently set to return for Aquaman 2. Many fans have been calling for Warner Bros. to drop the actress due to controversy over her relationship with Johnny Depp, which ended with abuse allegations towards both actors, and resulted in Depp filing several lawsuits against media outlets and Heard herself for defamation.
The ongoing litigation has led to a great deal of media attention focused on both Depp and Heard, and soon after Depp lost a lawsuit against The Sun, Warner Bros. asked him to leave the production of Fantastic Beasts 3. Depp still received full payment for the contract, and reports indicated that the decision was partially due to conflicts between court appearances and filming schedules, but the ordeal still had many fans accusing the studio of hypocrisy for continuing to employ Heard on their DC Extended Universe films.
So, in light of recent petitions to have Heard removed from Aquaman 2, some have started envisioning other actresses in the role of Mera. One artist, in particular, has created a piece of fan art that swaps Game of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke into the role. The image is a pretty straightforward mockup, but it does make a good case that Clarke does have the general look for the role, not to mention that she would certainly be a big draw for audiences given the popularity of Game of Thrones.
Still, there doesn't seem to be much interest from Warner Bros. in recasting Heard, especially while the details of the controversy are still being hashed out in court. While there is a chance audiences could see a new Mera in Aquaman 2 if new information comes to light, for now, it seems like Heard has the role pretty locked down, and she doesn't have any plans to step down.
Aquaman 2 will release on December 16th, 2022.
Source: JPH/Instagram