New information shared by Variety reportedly reveals that actress Amber Heard was “nearly fired” from James Wan’s DC film Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom but was kept on due to a “threatening” letter being sent to Warner Bros. Pictures by Heard’s ex and billionaire Elon Musk.
It’s detailed in the new report that sources “on both sides” told Variety about Heard’s close call to being removed from the sequel to the successful DC 2018 Aquaman flick.
Related: Aquaman 2 Synopsis, Returning Characters Revealed
According to the report, Warner Bros. and James Wan had plans to axe the actress from the second Aquaman film due to her having a lack of chemistry with the titular lead star, Jason Momoa. With information that a letter was sent to Heard’s attorney, Karl Austen, containing this decision and the reason as to why the decision was being made in the first place.
Despite Heard’s court case drama with her ex-husband Johnny Depp being publicly known worldwide, it’s claimed that the studio’s decision to axe the actress had nothing to do with this fact.
Variety states that another source disputed the above-mentioned detail as Heard’s original chemistry test with Momoa, prior to being cast in the first Aquaman, went well and “beat out” the two other actresses who did a similar chemistry test, one name being Abbey Lee.
Elon Musk’s Aquaman 2 Letter
According to the new report, the studio ended up keeping Heard on for Aquaman 2 solely because of the fact that her ex-boyfriend Elon Musk had “one of his litigators send a “scorched-earth letter to Warner Bros. threatening to burn the house down” if the actress wasn’t brought back for a sequel”.
Warner Bros. Pictures reportedly kept Heard on for the sequel as they “caved” after receiving Musk’s letter, however, it’s currently unclear as to exactly what the letter said. It’s just noted that the alleged letter was indeed about Heard being cut out of the sequel and that he wanted her to be kept on.
Both Heard and Musk have yet to comment on these new details.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom comes to theatres on December 20, 2023.
