Just a few hours after the actor was found guilty of two counts in his criminal trial, Marvel has officially parted ways with Jonathan Majors, ending his time as Kang the Conqueror in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
According Deadline, Marvel Studios has fired the actor, with a studio rep confirming that it would not be moving forward with Majors in any role in the MCU. The report mentions that it’s currently unclear whether Marvel will move forward with the character of Kang as a whole.
Majors was tapped to play the next big villain the MCU in 2021, when he portrayed He Who Remains (a multiversal variant of Kang) in the first season of Loki. He would later appear as Kang in this year’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and then again as Victor Timely (another Kang variant) in the second season of Loki.
The actor was also set to portray Kang in 2026’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, though it’s now unclear what will happen with that film moving forward.
The move comes following a verdict in Majors’ trial being reached on Monday. Majors was found guilty of assault in the third degree while recklessly causing physical injury, as well as harassment in the second degree. Majors was also found not guilty of assault in the third degree with intent to cause physical injury, as well as aggravated harassment in the second degree. His sentencing is scheduled for February 6, 2024.
What was Jonathan Majors on trial for?
Majors faced three counts of third-degree assault, second-degree aggravated harassment, three counts of third-degree attempted assault, and second-degree harassment. The charges stemmed from an incident in March in which he was arrested for assaulting a 30-year-old woman. Police say that Majors struck “[the victim] about the face with an open hand, causing substantial pain and a laceration behind her ear.” Additionally, he allegedly grabbed her hand and neck, “causing bruising and substantial pain.”
A previous report from ABC News notes that Majors made the 911 call himself, which police responded to. The call was “purportedly over concerns about his girlfriend, whom he lives with in a penthouse apartment in the Chelsea neighborhood.” After police arrived, the girlfriend told officers they were in a taxi together after returning from a bar and that Majors physically attacked her. Majors was then arrested after police noticed marks on the woman.
Majors’ criminal defense lawyer previously stated Majors is “provably innocent” and expected charges to be dropped, citing witness accounts and written retractions from the victim. This was followed by a later claim that there was video evidence of Majors’ innocence.
