Amber Heard's Twitter account disappears days after Musk's takeover
Amber Heard’s Twitter account disappears days after ex-boyfriend Elon Musk’s $44bn takeover as celebrities from William Shatner to Stephen King walk away over $8 a month charge for blue tick status
- Amber Heard’s Twitter account has vanished after Musk acquired the platform
- Heard and Musk began dating in 2016, but split in 2018 because of long distance
- CEO Musk has announced a series of changes as the new head of the company
- William Shatner of Star Trek is one of many celebs saying he won’t pay for Twitter
Amber Heard appears to have deactivated her Twitter account within days of her ex-boyfriend Elon Musk acquiring the platform, as a string of celebrities push back against the takeover.
A search for @realAmberHeard as of Thursday showed the movie star’s account was missing.
It was not immediately clear why Heard shut down her account, with some Twitter users speculating she may have wanted a break from the backlash over her defamation trial with ex-husband Johnny Depp.
But others wondered if having her ex-boyfriend as head of her social media account gave her second thoughts about staying.
Heard and Musk began dating in 2016, going public with their relationship a year later after dating in secret.
In February 2018, reports emerged that the pair had split for good.
Amber Heard’s Twitter account has vanished after Musk acquired the platform. Heard and Musk began dating in 2016, but split in 2018 because of long distance
Heard’s Twitter page shows that the account no longer exists, though no explanation was given as to why
William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek, had a curt reply when asked if he would spend $8 to keep his blue-tick verification status.
‘I think the $8 is to submit a complaint,’ he said, adding a winky face to the Tweet.
‘To answer your question if I would pay for a blue check? No. I don’t need to pay for false status when I have real. Elon possibly thinks people would. Knowing the delicate egos of people online; he’s probably right.’
He ended the Tweet with the hashtag #noblueisbetter, used by users to signal they have no intent of paying Twitter’s fee.
The pair addressed the breakup amid speculation, saying: ‘We would like to speak for ourselves. The distance has been really tough on our relationship, because we haven’t been able to see each other much.
‘All relationships have their ups and downs, of course.’
Heard wasn’t the only celebrity looking to take a step back from the platform after Musk became CEO after a back-and-forth with Twitter’s board, of which he is currently the only member.
Writer of ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Shonda Rhimes said she would be stepping away from the platform if the changes came in, as did singer Toni Braxton.
More celebrities took to Twitter to protest upcoming changes after Musk announced he intended to charge $8 for a blue-tick verification badge, a price he revised down from $20.
The online protests came soon after horror writer Stephen King said he’d leave the platform if it introduced charges.
‘They should pay me’, he said, echoing sentiments shared by other celebs taking against Musk’s changes.
Musk responded to a tweet from the author of The Shining complaining about the new charge, in the first hint that he planned to revise the price from $20 to $8.
Musk, 51, has been pitching his idea for a blue check fee since he bought the company, claiming it will end the current ‘lords and peasants’ system on the social media platform.
Actor Mia Farrow, as well as Madam Secretary star Téa Leoni, She Hulk actor Jameela Jamil, as well as authors and activists Shaun King and Amy Siskind have also threatened to boycott the platform after Musk took over.
Toni Braxton, left, announced she will leave the social media platform following Elon Musk’s purchase. Writer of ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Shonda Rhimes (right) said the same
The ‘badges’ could go live as soon as Monday, Bloomberg reported, with current blue check holders receiving a ‘grace period’ of multiple months before being forced to either pay or lose it.
In addition, by the end of this week, Musk plans to eliminate about 3,700 employees and end Twitter’s ‘work from anywhere’ policy in an attempt to drive down costs.
Musk had wavered throughout his attempt to buy Twitter on how many positions he would eliminate, originally saying as many as 75 percent of the company’s 7,500 workers before telling employees last week, with some reporting suggesting it would be 25 percent.
Author Stephen King, who wrote The Shining, said he will leave the platform if Musk introduces a blue-tick verification charge
Elon Musk is pictured speaking with employees at Twitter HQ. The CEO allegedly issued an ultimatum to the platform’s engineers, telling them to revamp the platform in two weeks
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