Disney may be busy moving films around its release calendar as a result of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, but one film which has been removed for entirely different reasons isMagazine Dreams.The movie, starringJonathan Majors, which was set to be released by both Disney and Searchlight, will not be seeing the light of day for the time being.
Majors has been suffering from legal issues following his arrest earlier this year on domestic battery charges against his partner. Majors was taken into custody by the New York Police Department in March 2023, following a response to a 911 call from a Manhattan apartment. Majors, at the time, was appearing in bothCreed IIIandAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.InQuantumania, he plays the role ofKang the Conqueror, which he reprised in future installments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, beginning with Season Two of the Disney+ series,Loki.
The reason for the film’s removal from the calendar isn’t yet known —however, with Majors' role inLokinow appearing to be concluded for the time being, it seems there’s no need for Disney to tiptoe around the fact that his name is toxic and, with his court case now set to continue to trial following a motion to dismiss being thrown out, cutting ties for the moment with the actor might be a pertinent move.
Why is Jonathan Majors a Problem for Disney?
Majors' behaviour created a major headache for both Disney and Marvel.Speaking on The Ringer’s The Big Picture podcast, writer and author of the upcoming bookMCU: The Reign of Marvel StudiosbookJoanna Robinsonhad previously made the claim that, in the process of her work, she had learned the intentions of the Marvel parliament - the group of creatives who map out their phases - had never intended to make Kangthe centre of the MCU,but that Majors' performance changed everybody’s minds.
Robinson, a senior writer for Vanity Fair, who has written exclusive Marvel articles over a number of years for the magazine, spoke at length abouthow Majors gave them a creative change of approach- that is, until the domestic battery charges. With Majors' case now set to head to trial, distance appears to be the smart thing for Disney.
