Jonathan Majors was on a stratospheric trajectory before being charged with assault and harassment in March of this year.
The 34-year-old actor had, weeks earlier, co-presented an award at the 95th Oscars with his Creed III co-star Michael B Jordan.
He was receiving rave reviews for his turn as Marvel’s major new villain Kang following his debut in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Then, on 25 March, New York City police responded to an emergency call over a “domestic dispute” involving Majors and a 30-year-old woman.
The actor was taken into custody and later charged with misdemeanours including assault.
The actor’s Manhattan trial concluded on Monday 18 December with the jury finding Majors guilty of one count of third-degree assault and one count of harassment, but acquitting him of another count of assault and one aggravated harassment count.
He will face sentencing on 6 February and could receive jail time for up to one year.
Majors’ attorney repeatedly denied any wrongdoing by the actor and maintained that the charges against him were false.
Despite the denials, a number of collaborators have cut ties with the actor since his arrest.
Jonathan Majors— (Getty Images for MGM Studios)
Marvel
Marvel Studios will no longer continue to work with Majors, The Independent learned shortly after the guilty verdict was delivered on 18 December.
The US Army
Majors was the face and narrator of two major US Army recruitment ads, which launched at the NCAA’s March Madness college basketball tournament.
In a statement shared on 26 March, the Enterprise Marketing Office said that the Army was aware of Majors’s arrest and was “deeply concerned by the allegations”.
It added that while Majors “is innocent until proven guilty, prudence dictates that we pull our ads until the investigation into these allegations is complete”.
Major General Alex Fink, head of Army marketing, later told press that they had worked quickly to repurpose the ads using footage that was filmed without Majors’ narration.
According to a Variety report on 17 April, Majors’ talent management Entertainment 360 have taken him off their books.
Previously, it was reported that the Lovecraft Country star had also parted ways from his former public relations manager, the Lede Company. Variety states that a source with knowledge of the PR company confirmed that the actor was removed as a client last month.
Jonathan Majors in court— (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Brands
Deadline reported that the Italian fashion house Valentino and Majors “mutually agreed” that he would not attend this year’s Met Gala as one of its guests. Valentino did not respond to The Independent’s request for comment.
Major League Baseball team the Texas Rangers has also cut Majors from their ad campaign, which was due to be released on 21 April.
Film and TV projects
Majors was set to star and executive produce an upcoming adaptation of the Walter Mosley novel, The Man in My Basement – a role he has since been cut from, per Deadline. Willem Dafoe is also attached to the movie while Majors’s role as the lead character is being recast.
Majors was also circling an Otis Redding biopic entitled Otis and Zelma, however, Deadline reports he is no longer under consideration for the film.
Walt Disney Studios removed Magazine Dreams, a forthcoming drama starring Majors, from its release calendar in October. Elijah Bynum’s film about an aspiring bodybuilder (Majors) who struggles to find human connection was originally set to premiere on 8 December.
Majors reprised his role as Kang in Loki season two opposite Tom Hiddleston, appearing in the 9 November series finale. However, Marvel is reportedly “in crisis” over the future of the MCU, which revolved around Kang as the next major baddie.
According to a November report in Variety, Marvel executives, including studio chief Kevin Feige, gathered in Palm Springs in September to discuss “backup plans, including pivoting to another comic book adversary, like Dr Doom”.
Non-profits
Variety reports that Majors is stepping away from the Gotham Film and Media Institute board and its Sidney Poitier Initiative.
Majors’ other past credits include the HBO drama Lovecraft Country, and the 2021 western The Harder They Fall.
