Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt in the film. (courtesy: universalpictures)

Washington:

As anticipation builds for the upcoming theatrical release of the action-comedy film ‘The Fall Guy,’ starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, controversy has erupted surrounding a particular line of dialogue of the film. Directed by David Leitch, the film features a scene where Hannah Waddingham’s character, Gail Meyer, makes a reference to the tumultuous relationship between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, as per The Hollywood Reporter. The dialogue in question occurs when Waddingham’s character enters a trailer looking dishevelled and remarks to director Jody Moreno, played by Blunt, “It’s like Amber and Johnny were just in here.”

This single line has ignited a firestorm of criticism on social media platforms.

Reacting to the scene, one user on X expressed disdain, stating, “The Fall Guy made a distasteful ‘joke’ about the domestic abuse Amber suffered at the hands of Johnny. It’s 2024, why are we writing these kinds of lines into movies? Nasty work.”

“the fall guy” made a distasteful “joke” about the domestic abuse amber suffered at the hands of johnny. it’s 2024, why are we writing these kinds of lines into movies? nasty work https://t.co/n1eCsM2o38

— lily (@lavfeysun) April 23, 2024

Another social media user questioned the humour behind the alleged joke, emphasizing, “Would love to ask the writer what he thinks is so funny about domestic violence.”

everyone should be aware that the new “comedy” movie The Fall Guy (which is getting a wide theatrical release in a few weeks) allegedly makes a cheap Amber / J*hnny joke. would love to ask the writer what he thinks is so funny about domestic violence…

— shane russo (@shxnerusso) April 22, 2024

The controversy is further fueled by the well-documented legal battles between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.

The couple’s highly publicized marriage and subsequent split in 2015 garnered significant media attention. Their legal disputes escalated in 2019 when Depp filed a defamation lawsuit against Heard over an op-ed she wrote about domestic violence, although Depp was not directly named in the article.

After a protracted court battle marked by sensational allegations from both parties, Depp emerged victorious on all defamation claims, while Heard won one claim and was awarded damages.

Against this backdrop, the inclusion of a reference to their relationship in The Fall Guy has struck a nerve with many viewers.

The Fall Guy is scheduled to premiere in theatres this Friday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)