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The title of the upcoming Avengers film will be “changed” after lead actor Jonathan Majors was found guilty of assault.
On Monday (December 18), The Independent learned that Majors, 34, was fired from Marvel Studios immediately after a jury found him guilty of assaulting his ex-girlfriend.
Majors' presence in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was in question after several accusations were made against the actor, who was set to play the main villain in the new Avengers film.
The 34-year-old was found guilty of one count of third-degree assault and one count of harassment, but was acquitted of another count of assault and aggravated harassment. He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 6 and faces up to a year in prison.
Majors previously played the role of Kang the Conqueror in the TV series Loki as well as the 2023 film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Both projects make him the next big Avengers villain, following in the footsteps of Josh Brolin's Thanos should occur. The fifth Avengers film was called Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
However, according to , that title has been canceled and the project will officially be known as Avengers 5 until a new title is decided. The decision to change the title suggests that Kang will be written out of the franchise rather than recast.
In September, it was reported that Marvel executives, including studio boss Kevin Feige, were meeting to discuss “replacement plans, including moving to a different comic book antagonist,” such as Fantastic Four character Dr. Doom, to discuss.
After news of the allegations broke, Majors was dropped by his leadership team, while the U.S. Army pulled a series of ads featuring the actor. He has also reportedly been dropped from an upcoming adaptation of the Walter Mosley novel The Man in My Basement.
Another upcoming Majors project, Magazine Dreams, has been removed from Walt Disney Studios' release calendar.
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After Monday's verdict, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg issued a statement saying, “At the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, we are committed to keeping survivors at the center of all our work.
Jonathan Majors as Kang in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)
(MCU)
“The evidence presented in this trial highlights a cycle of psychological and emotional abuse and escalating patterns of coercion that are far too common in the many cases of intimate partner violence we see every day.”
“Today a jury concluded that the pattern of abuse and coercion culminated in Mr. Majors assaulting and molesting his girlfriend. We thank the jury for their service and the survivor for courageously telling her story despite having to relive her trauma on the witness stand.”
The National Domestic Violence Hotline offers support for women on 0808 2000 247 or you can visit the Refuge website. There is a special advice number for men on 0808 8010 327. In the US, you can call the domestic violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).
Further international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org