Marvel to Change Upcoming 'Avengers' Film Title After Star Actor's Assault Conviction
The new “Avengers” film is getting a title change after actor Jonathan Majors was found guilty of assault in a New York courtroom.
The latest installment was set to be called “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty” but, for now, will be known as “Avengers 5,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Not only will the title be changed, Marvel has also dropped Majors from the villainous role of Kang the Conqueror per the U.K.’s Independent.
Majors entered into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2021 during the season finale of the first season of “Loki,” a Disney+ show, and filled a more robust role as the primary antagonist in this year’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
In fact, the post-credit scene for “Ant-Man” made it clear that Majors would be playing a prominent role as an overarching antagonist across multiple films and shows.
That scene will now be more footnote than precursor.
Marvel Studios has officially dropped Jonathan Majors following guilty verdict. pic.twitter.com/kxvgl1Bpr8
— Complex Pop Culture (@ComplexPop) December 18, 2023
On Monday, Majors was found guilty of assault and harassment after a two-week trial. He was acquitted on another assault charge and of aggravated harassment.
He faces up to a year in prison and will be sentenced on Feb. 6.
The charges stemmed from a March 2022 incident between Majors and his now-ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari.
Jabbari claimed the actor hit her on the side of the head, squeezed her finger until it broke, and twisted her arm during an altercation in New York City.
Surveillance video of the aftermath was released, which showed Jabbari chasing after Majors until he was able to flee.
ICYMI — Jonathan Majors Surveillance Video Shows Fight with Girlfriend, She Chases Him | Click to read more 👇 https://t.co/Q5VZNmtqfR
— TMZ (@TMZ) December 14, 2023
The “Creed III” actor’s attorney Priya Chaudhry attempted to argue Jabbari was after “revenge” after the actor “broke her heart.”
Following the guilty verdict, it is unclear which direction Marvel will go in for the role of Kang.
In November a dealmaker told Variety, “Marvel is truly fu**ed with the whole Kang angle.”
“And they haven’t had an opportunity to rewrite until very recently [because of the WGA strike]. But I don’t see a path to how they move forward with him.”
The departure of Majors just adds to problems Marvel has recently had.
The MCU had the box-office bomb of “The Marvels” earlier this year, with it becoming the lowest grossing MCU in its history. In addition, this year’s latest Ant-Man also failed to generate a profit, as there are rumblings of audience goers having “superhero fatigue.”
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