Will the MCU’s newest overarching villain look different in their next installment? With the
troubling news regarding actor Jonathan Majors, it certainly seems likely the role will be recast
a mere month after Kang the Conqueror was debuted. Keep watching to find out all of the details.
On Saturday, March 25th, Majors was arrested in New York after a domestic dispute with a
30-year-old woman, whom TMZ claims is the actor's girlfriend. The victim received minor injuries
while Majors was placed under arrest on charges of assault, harassment, and strangulation. Jonathan
Majors' representative says the actor is not guilty of the act, telling the Associated Press,
"He has done nothing wrong. We look forward to clearing his name and clearing this up."
On the afternoon of Sunday, March 26th, Criminal defense lawyer Priya Chaudhry
told Variety Jonathan Majors' innocence will be proven through video evidence,
and his team expects charges to be dropped entirely and imminently.
Majors has been one of the industry's fastest-rising talents, with notable
projects under his belt, such as "Da 5 Bloods," "The Harder They Fall," and most recently "Creed
III." Perhaps most noteworthy of these is Majors' role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
as the franchise's new main antagonist, Kang the Conqueror, along with his many variants.
As the new big bad of the MCU, Majors' Kang was expected to have a heavy presence
in Phases 5 and 6. Despite the actor's team claiming his innocence in the dispute, this
shocking news could shake up the MCU entirely, especially if Majors isn't entirely vindicated.
Introduced in the Disney+ series, "Loki" as Kang variant He Who Remains and later showing up as
Kang the Conqueror for the film "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania," Jonathan Majors' appearance in
the Marvel Cinematic Universe was meant to unleash a new breed of terror to the franchise. While the
character gave Scott Lang a run for his money in "Quantumania," his true impact on the future
of the MCU's Phases 5 and 6 has yet to be seen, as the mid-credit scene to the third "Ant-Man"
reveals the countless number of variants preparing to start a multiversal uprising.
This is only meant to be a sign of things to come, as near the end of Phase 6 will be seeing
Kang take on Earth's mightiest heroes as the titular adversary in "Avengers: The Kang Dynasty."
Should Majors be found guilty of his abuse allegations, however,
we probably won't see him back in the MCU again. While the long-running franchise hadn't seen much
in the way of actor controversy beforehand, the studio's firing of such key figures as
longtime producer Victoria Alonso for contract breaching suggests that the company takes its
legal matters very seriously. Additionally, Disney cut ties with James Gunn in 2018
after offensive tweets resurfaced, but the director was brought back on a year later.
But even if Majors is out of the picture, that doesn't mean it's the end for Kang.
Jonathan Majors' assault charges could very well close the curtain on the actor's time
in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, the character of Kang can still thrive in
the franchise's future. As mentioned earlier, the mid-credit scene of "Ant-Man and the Wasp:
Quantumania" reveals Kang's endless army of variants. While some may already be
used to seeing Majors as the power-hungry antagonist, it's possible that another
actor could replace Majors in the role with relative ease as another variant.
Remember that Kang, while having been an infamous member of Marvel's extensive rogue
gallery for decades, is a new addition to the MCU. As audiences are still growing accustomed
to the character and his abilities, having it explained that Kang's variants could take
on entirely different forms could work without being too jarring. At this time,
the only Kang variants we've seen have all been played by Majors, but it definitely
doesn't have to stay this way if Marvel Studios needs a believable way out. As proven in "Loki,"
variants of a character don't have to look remotely the same (or be the same species,
for that matter), so it wouldn't be the MCU's first time taking this approach. Simply re-casting
Majors with another actor would be the easiest and cheapest way out. Time will tell how this
troubling scenario progresses, but the MCU certainly has options should they need them.
If you or someone you know is struggling with domestic abuse,
please call or chat online with the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.