Yes Warner, you need to drop Amber Heard too.
A little while ago (OK three lockdowns, if we’re being honest. How pandemic time does fly) we defended Warner Media’s decision to drop Johnny Depp from the Fantastic Beasts franchise. The logic was pretty straight forward; Depp’s brand had been irreparably tarnished by his almost-too-messy-to-believe divorce with Amber Heard, he had just lost a libel suit against a British tabloid that labelled him a wife beater (meaning he could now be legally described as such) and both he and Heard had signed a legally binding declaration that neither had lied or defamed the other during their divorce proceedings. Depp essentially signed a legal admission that Heard’s accusations of abuse were legit. Couple all of that with the fact that Warner was a publicly traded company and was desperately trying to brand the Fantastic Beasts franchise as a family friendly one and it was just smart business to part ways with Depp.
But with Depp’s defamation suit against Heard now in full swing (and already turning into a legal blood bath), it’s time Warner also showed Heard the door for the same reason.
Make no mistake, the optics of parting ways with Heard would be pretty ugly. She’s seen by many as a victim and a move to cut her out of the studio’s plans wouldn’t go over well. Warner would be seen as siding with Depp-who also has a lengthy history of drug and alcohol addiction-in an increasingly ugly battle.
Not only that, but it would be seen as a victory by a very unsavoury crowd. Ever since Warner dropped Depp, social media has been flooded with passionate defences of the former teen heart throb and plenty of threats to boycott both Warner Bros. and future Fantastic Beasts movies. Make no mistake, some of them are people who truly believe Depp is innocent and Heard is either a gold digging character assassin or a Machiavellian mastermind who orchestrated the whole thing.
But plenty of Heard haters belong to the misogynist and incel tribes and are just chomping at the bit to take down a famous woman, making her look horrible in the process. They’re the kind that will argue with a straight face that Heard (along with every other famous woman on the planet) eats babies and bathes in the blood of virgins to stay young. In short, they are the very last people on the planet you want to make happy or see do a victory lap. And a professional divorce between Heard and Warner would send them into rabid fits of glee.
(Point of interest though, why didn’t we see these same would be career killers-many already threatening to boycott next spring’s Aquaman 2 over Heard’s continued involvement-threaten to boycott last years Justice League Snyder Cut? Not only did all her scenes remain, but Zack Snyder brought her back and paid her for extra footage for his prized ‘Cut. Where were all the threats and boycotts then? Anyone? Bueller?)
But the truth is, while we’ll probably never know what happened between them (the current trial is likely only going to make things murkier), Heard is just as guilty as Depp. She’s already admitted it. Remember that legal document we mentioned a few paragraphs ago, the one where they declared that neither had made any false allegations against the other during their divorce? The one we used as justification to drop Depp in the first place? Well Heard signed it too, so goose meet gander.
If the affidavit Depp singed declaring Heard’s claims of abuse against him weren’t fiction, then Heard has to be held to the same legal and professional standard. Depp threw more than a few nasty allegations her way and she essentially admitted to them with her signature (just as Depp did with his).
There are also some pretty unsettling recordings of Heard and she has a more than checkered history with her significant others as well. The truth is the only reason Heard hasn’t been as thoroughly scrutinized as Depp is because she isn’t as famous.
The other uncomfortable truth is that if Warner doesn’t hold Heard to the same legal standard as Depp, ugly optics or not, they’ll be guilty of a double standard.
Don’t forget that Warner is looking at forcing another Fantastic Beasts mainstay and charter DCEU member out of the fold with Ezra Miller. Miller has been a simmering pot for a little until recently exploding (and possibly ending their career). Recasting Miller’s role in any future Fantastic Beasts movies and replacing them as the Flash may be as expensive as it is complicated, but there’s virtually no way Warner can keep them on its payroll (especially as a face of one of its most important film franchises). But while Miller’s divorce with Warner seems a foregone conclusion, keeping Heard will look even worse once they’ve dropped the problematic Flash actor. Especially if the current trial reveals any other nasty gems about Heard, professional or otherwise.
And at this point, replacing Heard in the DCEU will be a lot easier than replacing Miller and just as warranted.
Warner needs to get its house in order, especially with its new corporate marriage official. Unfortunately, it’s carrying a lot of toxic baggage from its previous relationships. Worse yet, Warner has staked A LOT of its box office future on franchises and properties that have been misfiring for years. Warner used to be seen as a competition for Disney as the box office heavy weight champion. But its fallen a few spots down the card and is a middle weight at best these days. Some see it only as an after thought (despite the enormous success of The Batman). Until Warner develops some new cash cows, it needs to resuscitate the ones its dragging around. Since it really can’t do much about J.K. Rowling’s controversial Twitter habit, it needs to drop as many anchors that it does control as possible.
And right now, Amber Heard is a big one.
Image via www.hollywoodreporter.com
