Emilia Clarke Replacing Amber Heard In Aquaman 2?

Is Emilia Clarke really taking over for Amber Heard as Queen Mera in Aquaman 2? We have finally have the definitive word about this rumor.

By Doug Norrie | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

Emilia Clarke has found herself caught up in the Amber Heard rumor mill which isn’t always a place one wants to be. After all, Heard has been at the center of a months-long saga about her and her former husband Johnny Depp’s employment. So getting mixed up in the wash of that mess doesn’t seem like the place an actress would want to be. But here we are needing to lay to rest rumors of Emilia Clarke taking over for Heard in Aquaman 2. Simply put: it ain’t happening. The Queen of Dragons isn’t heading down into the ocean deeps any time soon. 

The rumors around Emilia Clarke taking over in the Aquaman sequel started late last week when it was reported that Amber Heard was being let go from the production. That stemmed from an Australian “news” outlet speculating Heard had violated her contract because of suspected drug use. But it was also a lesson in how rumors can spiral based around things that are kind of, but not really, news. 

That’s because this also dovetailed with a piece from Forbes magazine that was about Emilia Clarke putting her Venice, California home up for sale. While definitely not a Hollywood trade piece, buried in one of the final paragraphs was a line about how the actress was replacing Heard in Aquaman 2. It was something of a non-sequitur, but folks latched on to it quickly. 

emilia clarke

And there was also some recent fan art on Instagram that showed what Emilia Clarke would look like in the Amber Heard role for Aquaman. That was simply some talented photoshopper dreaming on the possibility of getting Clarke into the part. It wasn’t done out of speculation or studio news. So you can see how a mashup of unrelated things can all of a sudden be placed together to fit a simple narrative. In this case though, all of the rumors were totally baseless.

This is all to say that Emilia Clarke won’t be taking over as Queen Mera in Aquaman 2 and Amber Heard still very much has the role. It’s a good lesson in how a couple of bits of “news” can start the rumor mill rolling quickly. And, honestly, at least from the Heard side, wasn’t all that big of a stretch considering how much in flux her employment seems to have been over the last many months. With Johnny Depp being fired from basically all of his gigs, there was some speculation Heard might be on her way out too. 

As for Emilia Clarke, following her career-turning run as Daenerys Targaryen on Game of Thrones, things have been somewhat quiet for the actress. She was in 2019s Last Christmas alongside Henry Golding. It was a holiday rom-com that underperformed with critics. She also starred in Phillip Noyce’s Above Suspicion. But in terms of upcoming works, there really isn’t anything to speak of with no films currently announced or in pre-production. One thing we know for sure though, she won’t be taking over for Amber Heard in Aquaman 2.