Amber Heard and Johnny Depp may be locked in a complicated and messy ongoing legal battle, but now Depp’s fans are trying to insert themselves into the situation with the one tool in the contemporary fan arsenal that seems to get the most use when it comes to demands: a petition. Depp’s fans have started a “Remove Amber Heard from Aquaman 2” petition on Change.org demanding that Warner Bros. remove her from the project claiming that she is a “proven domestic abuser.”
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The petition, which at the time of this article’s writing has over 36,000 signatures, cites Depp’s $50 million lawsuit against Heard in which Depp claims that he was abused by his now ex-wife. The petition also goes on to claim that Heard has “systematically crusaded to ruin Depp in Hollywood” as well as notes Heard’s 2009 arrest for allegedly striking her ex, Tasya Van Ree as “demonstrating a repeated pattern of abuse”. Though, it’s worth noting that Van Ree has since defended Heard in that matter, stating that the situation had been “misinterpreted and over-sensationalized”.
“As Amber Heard is a known and proven domestic abuser, Warner Brothers and DC Entertainment should and must remove Heard from their Aquaman 2 film project,” the petition reads. “They must not ignore the suffering of Heard’s victims and must not glamorize a domestic abuser.”
Depp and Heard are currently locked in a legal battle after Depp filed the aforementioned $50 million defamation suit earlier this year, claiming that his career and reputation has been harmed due to a Washington Post op-ed Heard wrote about being a victim of domestic violence. While Depp is not named in the piece, his lawsuit claims that the former couple’s public disputes in recent years made it obvious for readers to connect the allegations to Depp — allegations he claims are false. The lawsuit even alleges that Heard’s op-ed cost him the role of Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
However, Depp himself has allegedly attempted to have Heard fired from one of her film roles — Aquaman. According to allegations part of another lawsuit Depp filed — this one against his former lawyer Jake Bloom — Depp is alleged to have “personally lobbied” former Warner Bros. chairman Kevin Tsujihara to have Heard fired from Aquaman as well as to “blacklist” her from getting other Warner Bros. roles. That lawsuit was ultimately settled with Depp receiving an eight-figure settlement.
As for Depp’s defamation lawsuit against Heard, that continues to take unexpected twists and turns. The latest sees Heard requesting that the court require Depp to undergo a mental health evaluation, claiming that Depp’s mental condition was a key component in the alleged abuse she suffered.
What do you think about the fan petition to have Heard fired from Aquaman 2? Let us know in the comments below.
