Amber Heard slams 'paid campaign' to remove her from 'Aquaman' sequel

Amber Heard has slammed a petition calling to remove her from the Aquaman sequel as a "paid campaign" with no basis in reality.

The petition was created after Johnny Depp lost his libel case against the Sun newspaper and was asked by Warner Brothers to step down from his role in Fantastic Beasts.

A judge ruled that the Sun did not act unlawfully and that claims made by the newspaper were shown to be "substantially true".

As per the Independent, Depp argued that serious damage was done to his reputation after he was called a "wife beater" following allegations of domestic abuse from Heard.

In his lawsuit, Depp also claimed that the newspaper's decision to publish the article alongside content about convicted sex offender Harvey Weinstein caused damage - as did the Sun's refusal to remove the article from their website.

In the video below, Heard describes her marriage to Depp: 

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Heard has now slammed a Change.org petition to have her removed from the Aquaman sequel.

In a statement to Entertainment Weekly, Heard said: "Paid rumors and paid campaigns on social media don't dictate [casting decisions] because they have no basis in reality.

"Only the fans actually made Aquaman and Aquaman 2 happen. I'm excited to get started next year."

The 34-year-old actress said that the libel case from her ex-husband has not impacted her career and that filming on the Aquaman sequel is still scheduled to take place in 2021.

After losing his libel case, Depp took to Instagram to reveal that he would be appealing the judge's decision and said that his "career will not be defined" by it.

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Thanking his supporters, he said: "Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone who gifted me their support and loyalty.

"Secondly, I wish to let you know that I have been asked to resign by Warner Bros. from my role as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts and I have respected and agreed to that request.

"Finally, I wish to say this.

"The surreal judgement of the court in the UK will not change my fight to tell the truth and I confirm that I plan to appeal.

"My resolve remains strong and I intend to prove that the allegations against me are false.

"My life and career will not be defined by this moment in time."

At the time of writing, the petition to have Heard removed from her Aquaman role has had almost 1.2 million signatures.