The title of the upcoming Avengers film will be changed to “Revenge” after lead star Jonathan Majors was found guilty of assault.
On Monday (December 18), The Independent learned that Majors, 34, had been dropped by Marvel Studios shortly after the verdict in which a jury found him guilty of attacking his ex-girlfriend.
Major’s presence in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was in question as several charges were filed 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 one count of aggravated harassment. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 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 set him up as the next big Avengers villain designed to follow in the footsteps of Josh Brolin’s Thanos. The fifth Avengers film was titled Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, this title has been scrapped, 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 gathering to discuss “backup plans, including leaning toward another comic book rival” such as the Fantastic Four character Dr. Doom.
After news of the allegations broke, Majors was fired by his management team, while the US Army removed several advertisements featuring the actor from circulation. He was also reportedly dropped from the upcoming adaptation of Walter Mosley’s novel The Man in My Basement. Another upcoming major project, Magazine Dreams, has been removed from Walt Disney Studios’ release calendar.
Following the sentencing on Monday, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg released a statement, saying: “At the Manhattan DA’s Office, we are committed to centering survivors in all our work.
“The evidence presented throughout this trial has illustrated a cycle of psychological and emotional abuse and escalating patterns of coercion that are all too common in many of the intimate partner violence cases we see every day.
“Today, a jury determined that a pattern of abuse and coercion culminated in Mr. Majors assaulting and harassing his girlfriend. We thank the jury for its service and the victim for bravely telling her story despite having to endure her trauma on the stand.