Jonathan Majors | |
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![]() Majors in 2018 | |
Born | Jonathan Michael Majors September 7, 1989 |
Alma mater | University of North Carolina School of the Arts (BFA) Yale University (MFA) |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2017–present |
Children | 1 |
Jonathan Michael Majors (born September 7, 1989)[1][2] is an American actor. After graduating from Yale University with an MFA degree, Majors rose to prominence for starring in the independent feature film The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019). In 2020 he gained wider notice for starring in the HBO television series Lovecraft Country, for which he received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Majors has since portrayed Nat Love in the western The Harder They Fall (2021), Jesse L. Brown in the war film Devotion (2022), and a boxer in the sports film Creed III (2023). Since 2021, he has appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as different versions of the character Kang the Conqueror.
Majors was born in Santa Barbara County, California, and spent his early years living with his mother, who is a pastor,[3] his older sister, and younger brother on the Vandenberg military base, as his father was in the US Air Force.[4] In 2020, Majors said "Our father, who loved us dearly, just kind of disappeared one day ... and he resurfaced 17 years later."[4] Majors has since reconnected with his father.[5] The family moved around various cities in Texas, including Dallas, Georgetown, and Cedar Hill.[6] He attended Cedar Hill High School and graduated from Duncanville High School in 2008.
He had a difficult childhood, growing up with recently-released criminals such as drug dealers or murderers for neighbors who wore ankle monitors.[7] As a teenager, Majors was arrested for shoplifting, suspended from high school for fighting, and at one point he lived in his car while working two jobs[4] after being kicked out of his house.[7] He eventually found a "safe space" in the world of theatre,[4] where he found some solace and joined after watching Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, in which he felt Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker to resemble the criminals with moralistic dualities he grew up with for his complexity of good and evil, leading him to become an actor so he could inspire others like Ledger did to him.[7]
Majors studied for his bachelor's degree at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts,[8] and later attended the Yale School of Drama; he graduated with an MFA degree in 2016.[9]
Majors secured his first onscreen role in the ABC miniseries When We Rise while still a student at Yale.[10][11] In the series, Majors portrayed real-life gay activist Ken Jones; as part of his research for the role, he met with Jones before playing him.[12] That same year, Majors appeared in his first feature film role as Corporal Henry Woodson in the revisionist Western film Hostiles, written and directed by Scott Cooper. The film had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival on September 2, 2017.[13] It was also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2017.[14] More roles followed, in the 2018 films White Boy Rick and Out of Blue.[15][16] Both of these films screened at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival,[17] with the latter competing for the Platform Prize.[18]
In 2019, Majors rose to prominence after starring in Joe Talbot's critically acclaimed independent feature film The Last Black Man in San Francisco, for which he received an Independent Spirit Award nomination.[19] The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2019.[20] It was released by A24 in the United States on June 7, 2019.[21] Former President of the United States Barack Obama rated it as one of the best films of 2019.[22] Majors's performance was praised by critics: Manohla Dargis of The New York Times called his performance "a mournful heartbreaker",[23] while Rolling Stone described his turn as "both deeply sensitive and charmingly left-of-center".[24] Majors also appeared in three other 2019 film releases: Captive State,[25] Gully,[26] and Jungleland.[27]
In 2020, Majors starred alongside Chadwick Boseman and Delroy Lindo in Spike Lee's war drama film Da 5 Bloods, which was released on Netflix.[28] That year, he also garnered wider notice for portraying Atticus Freeman in the HBO television series Lovecraft Country.[29] His performance in Lovecraft Country was favorably reviewed by critics; Vogue dubbed him "the emotional core of the show".[30] Majors debuted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Disney+ series Loki as "He Who Remains".[31] In 2021, Majors starred as the lead actor in Jeymes Samuel's directorial debut film The Harder They Fall, acting alongside Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Regina King and Delroy Lindo.[32] In 2023, he starred in Magazine Dreams[33] and co-starred alongside Michael B. Jordan in Creed III. He portrayed Kang the Conqueror and several other variants of the character in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.[34][35][36]
Majors has one child, a daughter.[37]
On March 25, 2023, Majors was accused and arrested on assault, strangulation and harassment charges, stemming from a domestic dispute with a 30-year-old woman, who "sustained minor injuries to her head and neck and was removed to an area hospital in stable condition", according to New York City police.[38] He was released from custody that day, and his spokesperson denied the allegations, saying Majors "has done nothing wrong … We look forward to clearing his name and clearing this up."[38] On March 26, Majors was arraigned in a New York City court on charges including assault, attempted assault, harassment, and aggravated harassment in connection to the arrest.[39]
Following his arrest, the United States Army announced they were suspending recruiting commercials that starred Majors.[40][41] In a statement released to the public, the Army said, "While Mr. Majors is innocent until proven guilty, prudence dictates that we pull our ads until the investigation into these allegations is complete."[42]
On March 25, Majors's attorney Priya Chaudhry said that there were "two written statements from the woman recanting these allegations".[42] On March 30, Chaudhry released text messages allegedly sent by the woman; one message included statements that: "They said they had to arrest you as protocol when they saw the injuries on me and they knew we had a fight. I’m so angry that they did. And I’m sorry you’re in this position. Will make sure nothing happens about this. I told them it was my fault for trying to grab your phone. I only just got out of hospital", while another message included: "I reiterated how this was not an attack and they do not have my blessing on any charges being placed. I read the paper they gave me about strangulation and I said point blank this did not occur and should be removed immediately."[43][44][45]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2017 | Hostiles | Corporal Henry Woodson | |
2018 | White Boy Rick | Johnny "Lil Man" Curry | |
Out of Blue | Duncan J. Reynolds | ||
2019 | The Last Black Man in San Francisco | Montgomery Allen | |
Captive State | Rafe Drummond | ||
Gully | Greg | ||
Jungleland | Pepper | ||
2020 | Da 5 Bloods | David | |
2021 | The Harder They Fall | Nat Love / Nathaniel Buck | |
2022 | Devotion | Jesse Brown | |
2023 | Magazine Dreams | Killian Maddox | |
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania | Kang the Conqueror | ||
Creed III | Damian "Diamond Dame" Anderson |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2017 | When We Rise | Young Ken Jones | 4 episodes |
2020 | Lovecraft Country | Atticus Sampson "Tic" Freeman | Main role |
2021–present | Loki | Time Keepers / He Who Remains / Victor Timely | Episodes: "The Nexus Event" and "For All Time. Always."[46] |
2022 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | Episode: "Jonathan Majors/Taylor Swift"[47] |
Award | Year | Work/Recipient(s) | Category | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
African-American Film Critics Association | 2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Ensemble | Won | [48] |
Austin Film Critics Association | 2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Ensemble | Nominated | [49] |
Black Reel Awards | 2020 | The Last Black Man in San Francisco | Outstanding Supporting Actor, Motion Picture | Nominated | [50] |
Outstanding Breakthrough Performance, Male | Nominated | ||||
2021 | Lovecraft Country | Outstanding Actor, Drama Series | Won | [51] | |
2022 | The Harder They Fall | Outstanding Actor | Nominated | [52] | |
Loki | Outstanding Guest Actor, Drama Series | Nominated | |||
Critics' Choice Awards | 2021 | Da 5 Bloods | Best Acting Ensemble | Nominated | [53] |
Lovecraft Country | Best Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | |||
2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Acting Ensemble | Nominated | [54] | |
Critics' Choice Super Awards | 2021 | Lovecraft Country | Best Actor in a Horror Series | Nominated | [55] |
2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Actor in an Action Movie | Nominated | [56] | |
Detroit Film Critics Society | 2021 | The Harder They Fall | Best Ensemble | Nominated | [57] |
Gotham Awards | 2019 | The Last Black Man in San Francisco | Breakthrough Actor | Nominated | [58] |
2021 | The Harder They Fall | Ensemble Tribute Award | Won | [59] | |
Hollywood Critics Association Awards | 2021 | Da 5 Bloods | Best Cast Ensemble | Won | [60] |
Houston Film Critics Society | 2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Cast Ensemble | Nominated | [61] |
Independent Spirit Awards | 2020 | The Last Black Man in San Francisco | Best Supporting Male | Nominated | [62] |
Los Angeles Film Critics Association | 2019 | Himself | New Generation Award | Won | [63] |
NAACP Image Awards | 2021 | Lovecraft Country | Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | [64] |
Da 5 Bloods | Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture | Nominated | |||
2022 | The Harder They Fall | Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture | Nominated | [65] | |
Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture | Won | ||||
National Board of Review Awards | 2021 | The Harder They Fall | Best Cast | Won | [66] |
Newport Beach Film Festival | 2022 | Himself | Artist of Distinction Award | Won | [67] |
Primetime Emmy Awards | 2021 | Lovecraft Country | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Nominated | [68] |
San Diego Film Critics Society | 2022 | The Harder They Fall | Best Performance by an Ensemble | Nominated | [69] |
Saturn Awards | 2021 | Lovecraft Country | Best Actor on Television | Nominated | [70] |
2022 | Loki | Best Guest Starring Role on Television | Nominated | [71] | |
Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2021 | Da 5 Bloods | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Nominated | [72] |
Lovecraft Country | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | |||
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards | 2021 | The Harder They Fall | Best Ensemble | Nominated | [73] |
Mind you, I was born in 1989.
On Friday night [September 7, 2018], on his 29th birthday, Jonathan Majors found himself as a breakout actor of the Toronto Film Festival.
Majors, 30...
The Texas-raised star, 30...
Presented content of the Wikipedia article was extracted in 2023-04-01 based on https://en.wikipedia.org/?curid=54469863