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Aquaman 2 Producer Says He Won't 'React' to Johnny Depp Fan Pressure to Fire Amber Heard

Amber Heard
Amber Heard

Warner Bros/DC/Kobal/Shutterstock Amber Heard in Aquaman

Aquaman 2 producer Peter Safran won't be bowing down to fan peer pressure to fire Amber Heard from the film.

The producer spoke to Deadline about multiple requests by Johnny Depp fans for Heard to be fired from the second installment in the franchise. The requests resurfaced after director James Wan announced in June the name of the film was Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

"I don't think we're ever going to react to, honestly, pure fan pressure," Safran told Deadline. "You gotta do what's best for the movie. We felt that if it's James Wan and Jason Momoa it should be Amber Heard. That's really what it was."

Safran added that Depp fan reactions to Heard didn't go unnoticed by him or others working on the film.

"One is not unaware of what is going on in the Twitter-verse, but that doesn't mean you have to react to it or take it as gospel or accede to their wishes," he said. "You have to do what's right for the film, and that's really where we landed on it."

RELATED: Johnny Depp Fails to Overturn Ruling in 'Wife Beater' Libel Case, Amber Heard Says She's 'By No Means Surprised'

A petition to fire Heard by Depp fans began after the formerly married couple went head-to-head during Depp's libel suit against The Sun in the U.K. last year. The court dismissed Depp's claim and ruled in favor of the publication after it labeled the actor a "wife beater."

In November, following the court's verdict, Warner Bros. asked Depp to resign from his role as Gellert Grindelwald in the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 3 film, to which Depp agreed.

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That same month, Heard shot down speculation she'd been fired from Aquaman 2 in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

"Paid rumors and paid campaigns on social media don't dictate [casting decisions] because they have no basis in reality," Heard said. "Only the fans actually made Aquaman and Aquaman 2 happen. I'm excited to get started next year."

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is set to be released on December 16, 2022.

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