Playing Kang the Conqueror in ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantomania’ was the actor’s role, and he was also set to appear in ‘Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
Marvel Studios has parted ways with Jonathan Majors, a shocking setback for the actor who was on the rise.
After a two-week trial over a March altercation with his former partner, Grace Jabbari, the actor was convicted of harassment and reckless assault in the third degree by a Manhattan jury on Dec. 18.
Kang the Conqueror, the time-traveling antagonist, was the central character of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s current story arc, which the studio owned by Disney had built around Majors. He appeared in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantomania this year and in both Loki seasons, and he was supposed to star in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which was scheduled for May 1, 2026. The movie had not started shooting and was still being written. There was no director attached yet. Majors was arrested in March.
Marvel faces two options at this point. It could find a new actor for the role, but it is uncertain how many would want to take on a part that another actor was fired from so publicly. The alternative is to rethink its plans and introduce a different villain. Marvel sources are not saying anything, but there are signs that the studio is already doing this. In November, Marvel brought in Loki creator Michael Waldron to work on a new version of what used to be called Kang Dynasty, but is now known as Avengers 5, sources say.
The studio has been preparing for this scenario for months, and Waldon might have been involved in that change of direction.
Marvel has changed actors before, but for creative and financial reasons, not for legal issues. The first Iron Man in 2008 featured Terrence Howard as James Rhodes, while Edward Norton played the lead in The Incredible Hulk. Howard did not come back for the 2010 sequel of Iron Man, blaming money issues, and Don Cheadle took over the role. Norton, on the other hand, had creative differences with Marvel on Incredible Hulk, and Mark Ruffalo replaced him for The Avengers (2012). And more recently, Harrison Ford took over the role of Thunderbolt Ross from the late William Hurt in the upcoming Captain America: New World Order.
Majors used to be one of the most promising actors in Hollywood. He was in Quantomania and Creed III in 2023. He first gained fame with The Last Black Man in San Francisco, and then starred in Devotion, Lovecraft Country, The Harder They Fall and Da 5 Bloods. The body-building drama Magazine Dreams premiered at Sundance in January 2023, but its future is uncertain as distributor Searchlight pulled it from the schedule because of the actor’s legal problems.
On March 25, Majors was taken into custody after he reported finding his former partner, Grace Jabbari, passed out in their New York flat. Jabbari had wounds on her body, police said, such as a broken and bruised finger and a slash behind an ear. Majors denied all accusations.
His legal problems caused PR firm The Lede Company and his managers at Entertainment 360 to cut ties with the actor. He is still with WME, but the verdict might change that.
