Yahoo News Marvel drops Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror hours after guilty verdict
The actor was set to play the villain in 2026’s "Avengers: The Kang Dynasty" and 2027's "Secret Wars," but was dropped following a guilty verdict in an assault trial.
Marvel is parting ways with Jonathan Majors.
EW can confirm that the studio is officially cutting ties with the 34-year-old actor, who plays the villain Kang the Conqueror. Majors was set to star in multiple Marvel projects, including the upcoming Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, but was dropped just hours after a jury found him guilty on two counts after a March domestic dispute.
Earlier this year, Disney was touting Majors as the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The actor headlined Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as Kang the Conqueror, a time-traveling villain who would anchor the studio's upcoming projects. He also appeared in Loki season 1 and season 2. Like Thanos, Kang was expected to pop up in multiple films and TV shows, culminating with 2026's Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and 2027's Avengers: Secret Wars.
But Majors' Marvel future came into question just a few weeks after Quantumania hit theaters. The actor was arrested March 25 in New York after police responded to a 911 call in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood, where a 30-year-old woman, his then-girlfriend, told them she had been assaulted. She was taken to the hospital for minor injuries to her head and neck, and Majors was later charged with assault and harassment.
In a split verdict, a Manhattan jury found Majors guilty on one count of third-degree assault and one count of second-degree harassment, but acquitted the actor on two other counts. Per ABC News, he is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 6, 2024, and he faces up to a year in prison.
Representatives for Majors have maintained the actor's innocence, and in March, his attorney released text messages purportedly sent by the alleged victim, in which she appeared to recant the claims. In the texts — which have not been confirmed — the woman allegedly writes, "I told them it was my fault for trying to grab your phone."
"Please let me know you're okay when you get this," the text continues. "They assured me that you won't be charged. They said they had to arrest you as protocol when they saw the injuries on me and they knew we had a fight. I'm so angry that they did. And I'm sorry you're in this position. Will make sure nothing happens about this. … I love you."
According to Variety, "multiple alleged abuse victims of Majors" have since come forward and are reportedly cooperating with the Manhattan district attorney's office.
In the weeks following his arrest, Majors' talent management company Entertainment 360 and his PR firm the Lede Company dropped him as a client. According to Deadline, he's also been cut from a number of upcoming projects, including the film The Man in My Basement and an ad campaign for the Texas Rangers baseball team. He's also no longer under consideration for a planned Otis Redding biopic.
A graduate of the Yale School of Drama, Majors quickly established himself as a rising star in Hollywood, with acclaimed roles in The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Da 5 Bloods, and Lovecraft Country (which earned him an Emmy nomination). Earlier this year, he appeared with Michael B. Jordan in Creed III, and he also earned raves for his role in the Sundance drama Magazine Dreams, which has since been pulled from the release schedule.
Marvel has yet to announce plans to recast the role of Kang.
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