Last year, millions of people tuned in to watch the explosive trial of Pirates of the Caribbean star Johnny Depp and his ex-wife, Aquaman actress Amber Heard. Depp initially sued Heard for defamation after a 2018 OpEd was published in The Washington Post that accused Depp of domestic abuse. Heard countersued, claiming that Depp also defamed her. For six weeks, the two went back and forth, accusing the other of verbal, physical, and emotional abuse.
It’s been more than a year since the trial, but Depp and Heard are still making headlines and dealing with the fallout from their heated battle. Some of that fallout appears to include Amber Heard being forced out of her role as Mera in Aquaman.
During and after the trial, rumors were swirling that Heard had been replaced in her role as the queen of Atlantis. However, those rumors were denied and Heard kept her role, but it became almost non-existent. She will reportedly make minimal on-screen appearances. And now, we have learned that it may have a lot to do with the friction between her and her costar Jason Momoa, who plays Aquaman.
Notes from Heard’s therapy sessions were recently released on Reddit, and they show the tension between Heard and Momoa. According to Heard, Momoa would “torment” her on set by dressing up as Johnny Depp.
The psychiatrist’s notes also say that both Momoa and Aquaman director James Wan wanted her fired. The notes say that Wan was upset that he couldn’t post on social media about Aquaman because of the harassment he would receive. Heard said that she apologized to Wan for his feeling that she was ruining things for the film.
Therapist notes reveal James Wan and Jason Momoa blamed Amber Heard for increasing harassment and eventually wanted her fired. Momoa used to come to set dressed like Johnny Depp.
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However, she did receive support from Zack Snyder and his wife, Deborah. Snyder has directed a number of DC films, including Man of Steel and Justice League.
Depp v Heard Drama
From the start, the court of public opinion seemed to be solidly on Depp’s side. That feeling only increased after a tape was played in court where Heard admitted to hitting Depp. She told him to tell the police because they would not believe him. However, Depp did take some hits during the defamation trial, when Heard showed videos and images of Depp reportedly passed out in a drunken or drug-induced stupor.
Depp claimed that Heard had ruined his career with her accusations. He was dropped from multiple franchises and lost millions of dollars. Disney was quick to distance itself from Depp. The actor said that he was dropped from Pirates of the Caribbean 6, which cost him $22 million.
He was also dropped by Warner Bros., the studio behind the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise — a spinoff of Harry Potter. Depp had portrayed Gellert Grindelwald and was replaced by Mads Mikkelsen.
In the end, the jury decided that, while Depp and Heard had both defamed each other, Heard was more at fault. Depp was ordered to pay Heard $2 million, but Heard was ordered to pay more than $10 million. However, Depp agreed to accept just $1 million from Heard, and he would donate it to charity.