Marvel Recasting Jonathan Majors As Kang Following Abuse Case?
Reports indicate Marvel Studios is actively looking to replace Jonathan Majors as Kang.
Marvel is preparing to recast Kang the Conqueror amid Jonathan Majors’ abuse allegations. The 33-year-old made his first big screen appearance as a character in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania and was poised to become a prominent villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe But due to the ongoing investigation, the studio is making plans to continue the story without him.
According to The Direct, there have been behind-the-scenes discussions about replacing him after the second season of Loki. The latest installment of the popular Disney+ series has faced several delays due to storyline issues. But Jonathan Majors will still appear as numerous variants of Kang the Conqueror. Meanwhile, Marvel is said to have an idea of the kind of actor they want to replace him.
But for now, the studio is waiting for the investigation into the abuse charges against Jonathan Majors to be completed. The Creed III star’s legal troubles began when he was involved in a “domestic dispute” with an unnamed woman in late March. She was hospitalized with “minor injuries to her head and neck” after he allegedly struck her “about the face with an open hand.”
Although Jonathan Majors was charged with strangulation, assault, and harassment, his attorney Priya Chaudhry maintained his innocence at the time of his arrest. She claimed to have “irrefutable evidence” that the charges were false and suggested that the actor “is probably the victim of an altercation with a woman he knows,” insinuating that the alleged victim was experiencing an “emotional crisis.”
In April, a judge granted the victim a Full Temporary Order of Protection, following “the People’s request and with the consent of defense counsel.” That means both two parties are barred from any direct or third-party contact. These rules will remain in effect until May 9, when Jonathan Majors is set to appear in court.
This isn’t the first recasting Marvel has had to deal with. Don Cheadle replaced Terrence Howard as War Machine in the second Iron Man movie (and subsequent films) after Howard requested a $10 million paycheck to appear in the follow-up. The change was seamless and didn’t result in any value being lost from the story.
Now that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has since entered the Multiverse Saga replacing Jonathan Majors would be even easier. Fans have already been introduced to variants or alternate universe versions of established characters. While most of Loki’s variants were played by Tom Hiddleston, younger and older versions of the character were portrayed by different actors.
In Spider-Man: No Way Home, audiences were introduced to two variants of Peter Parker, which were very different from Tom Holland’s web-slinger. Given the circumstances and plot devices at play, the rules in place make it more acceptable for Kang, a character who is known to have multiple variants throughout the saga, to appear with a different face and demeanor from Jonathan Majors.
Actors tapped to replace him are Damson Idris, John Boyega, and O-T Fagbenle. Meanwhile, fans can expect to see Jonathan Majors in the second season of Loki in mid-2023. The highly anticipated series will consist of six episodes as part of Phase Five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
