Following the very public defamation case which took place earlier this year involving Amber Heard and her ex-husband, the former faced immense public backlash. Heard was also said to have lost her role in the sequel to DC’s Aquaman (2018), shortly after the court trial took place. But it looks like that might not be the case after all, as new reports claim that the scenes shot by the actress in Aquaman 2 are very much intact.
As per sources, James Wan, the director who helmed Aquaman and is also responsible for directing the sequel, was asked to bring the budget down a notch for the latter’s reshoot due to certain financial restrictions. And it is believed that the same could end up playing in Amber Heard’s favor with her scenes possibly making it to the big screens despite people claiming otherwise.
Aquaman 2‘s Reshoot Budget is to Reportedly Get Reduced
A couple of sources have recently come forward, and according to Variety the budget for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is reportedly going to get reduced.
Pamela Abdy, who is co-chair at Warner Bros. Pictures, apparently told Aquaman 2‘s director, James Wan, that the budget for reshooting his action/fantasy sequel needs to be decreased. Especially considering how it has already gone beyond $205 million. And this order is said to have been given even before James Gunn and Peter Safran became co-CEOs at DC Studios. So, Wan is going to be left with no other choice but to follow it.
Related: Is Amber Heard Responsible for James Gunn Deciding To End Aquaman Franchise After The Lost Kingdom?
But while this could be unfortunate news for the filmmaker, it could prove to be quite beneficial for Amber Heard, who starred in the first film but was said to have lost her position in the second, as a result of the ugly aftermath of her legal battle against Johnny Depp.
Maybe all hope isn’t lost for Heard after all.
Aquaman 2 Might Just Revive Amber Heard’s Reportedly Scrapped Scenes
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was originally passed for a reshoot to include more scenes with Ben Affleck‘s Batman in the film. But wild rumors simultaneously started to flare up claiming how Heard’s screentime was being cut from it due to her decreasing popularity post-trial. Various media sources reported that the Never Back Down star was apparently not going to appear for the reshoots of the movie.
But with this alleged new development with regard to the reshoot’s budget reduction, it could very well be a probability for Heard’s scenes to be revived in the Jason Momoa-led sequel. That is if they were discarded in the first place. One DC insider on Twitter also attested to the same possibility, saying how Heard was still going to portray Mera on screen with the scenes remaining “unchanged.”
However, these rumors are yet to be confirmed by either the superhero franchise or the actress herself.
Aquaman and the lost Kingdom is scheduled to hit cinemas on December 25, 2023.
Source: Variety
