The next entry in DC film universe will be Aquaman. While the character's power set in the comics often makes him the subject of jokes, the movie had no problem getting some pretty big names to join the cast. One of those names is Amber Heard, who will play the role of Mera. The actress makes it clear that if Mera had simply been another woman that needed saving by a hero, she wouldn't have been interested in the part, but she says producer Zack Snyder got her on board with two words, "warrior queen." According to Heard...
I'm allergic to being the damsel, the two-dimensional archetype of what women are often limited to in this industry, especially in the superhero world. Zack got me at 'warrior queen.' He said, 'You get a sword and a crown,' and I'm like, 'Okay.'
Movie fans love comic book movies because they get to see their favorite characters come to life on screen, including all the great action they previously had to create themselves. It's also the reason that so many actors want to be involved in comic books movies. They get to play those characters and live out the fantasy of being superheroes on the big screen. It seems Amber Heard fits that bill as well. She tells Entertainment Weekly she had no interest in playing the damsel, but as soon as she realized that wasn't who this character would be, things changed.
A lot of these classic comic book characters were created 50 or more years ago, and as such, they fell into a lot of tropes of the day. The heroes were almost all men, and the women, quite often, were there to be saved by the hero. While many of these characters have been updated over the years, both on the page and in other mediums, the fact that these characters are viewed as "classic" by so many means that many dated stereotypes have survived to this day.
While Mera won't be the main character in Aquaman, she will likely be a strong an important character. Following DC's success with Wonder Woman, the company probably wants to continue to build on that, and another powerful female character is a good way to do that. While we don't really know how Mera will fit into Aquaman, we got a small taste of what she was capable of in Justice League and it's a safe bet she'll have an important, if secondary, role in the new DC film.
We're waiting for our first real look at Aquaman, with the movie set to debut in six months, the first trailer should hit any day now.
