TAKING SIDES

A-List Hollywood Backs Marvel Star Guilty of Assaulting Girlfriend

Actor Jonathan Majors was found guilty in 2023 after an altercation with his then-girlfriend.

Whoopi Goldberg and Matthew McConaughey have joined the list of actors advocating for ex-Marvel actor Jonathan Majors after he was sentenced for domestic violence against his former girlfriend, The Hollywood Reporter revealed today.

In March of last year, Majors was convicted on one count of misdemeanor and third-degree assault and one count of second-degree harassment against his ex-girlfriend, British dancer Grace Jabbari. He was sentenced to probation and a yearlong domestic violence intervention program. The Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp star maintains his innocence.

Majors’s friends in Hollywood, including Goldberg, McConaughey, and Michael B. Jordan, have all expressed support for him.

“You don’t get to say sorry these days,” said Goldberg, who appeared alongside Majors in his first on-screen role. “He was arrested. He went to court. He did what he was supposed to do. I’m not sure what else there is.”

McConaughey starred alongside Majors in the 2018 drama White Boy Rick. "I’ve known and know him as someone who is continuously striving to improve as a human, a man, and an actor," he said. “I believe in him.”

Jordan, Majors' director and costar in Creed III, told The Hollywood Reporter: “I would love to make Creed IV together—among other projects."

Majors has previously asserted that he’s never struck a woman.

The jury in the trial delivered a split verdict, acquitting Majors of two other counts of assault and aggravated harassment. It found that he had caused his girlfriend’s injuries—but not intentionally. But two of his exes supported Jabbari with pretrial statements claiming that the star abused them, too.

Majors’s troubles stem from an incident in March 2023 when he and Jabbari were crossing the Manhattan Bridge in New York City in the back seat of a chauffeured Escalade. According to Jabbari’s testimony, she saw a flirty text pop up on Majors' phone and tried to grab the device. Majors allegedly retaliated by twisting her right arm before dealing a blow to her head. Majors asked the driver to stop the car at the end of the bridge.

A video that played in court showed Majors jumping out of the Escalade, followed by Jabbari. He then spun on his heels, picked her up, and threw her back inside the car before running. The situation escalated further when Jabbari left the car and chased after him.

Majors went to stay in a hotel that night, he testified. Jabbari went to a nightclub but returned to their shared Chelsea penthouse apartment. When Majors returned home the following morning, he found Jabbari unconscious and half naked on the floor and called 911.

She was taken to Bellevue Hospital and treated for two injuries: a cut behind her ear and a fractured finger. She also received a psychological evaluation.

In December 2023, Marvel fired Majors amid the allegations.

Instead of settling the case, Majors pled innocent, and his attorney filed a cross-complaint against Jabbari, claiming she was to blame.

Jabbari testified that Majors often exhibited “rage and aggression” during their relationship. Six months before the incident, he had warned Jabbari against going to the hospital for recurring headaches: “They will ask you questions, and as I don’t think you could actually protect us, it could lead to an investigation even if you do lie, and they suspect something,” he told her.

Majors, who was also accused at trial of emotional and physical abuse by two ex-girlfriends, was enrolled in a 52-week domestic violence program and put on probation.

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound performer was on track to be in the 2026 Avengers movie and make a fortune from playing MCU iconic villain Kang the Conqueror. His dreams have dwindled since he was sentenced and dropped by Marvel, his manager, and his publicity firm. He’s unsure if fans will take him back next week when his new film, Magazine Dreams, comes out March 21.

But exes like Maura Hooper aren’t convinced. “I don’t really care that his movie is coming out,” she said. “How could I know if he’s changed? I don’t see redemption happening here.”

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