Disney removes Jonathan Majors film from release calendar amid assault trial

‘Magazine Dreams’ stars Majors as a disturbed bodybuilder

Walt Disney Studios has removed Magazine Dreams, a forthcoming drama starring Jonathan Majors, from its release calendar amid the star’s newly-scheduled assault trial.

Elijah Bynum’s film about an aspiring bodybuilder (Majors) who struggles to find human connection was originally set to premiere on 8 December. The Independent has contacted Disney for comment.

A New York judge decided this week that the US actor, 33, will face trial on domestic abuse charges after rejecting the defence’s motion to dismiss the case.

In March this year, Majors was accused of attacking his then-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. Majors has denied the claim and accused Jabbari of attacking him.

The Independent has contacted Majors’s lawyer for comment.

During the March fight, Jabbari alleges she “sustained substantial pain, including a fractured finger, bruising about her body, a laceration behind her right ear, and a bump on her head”, according to court documents.

Jonathan Majors in ‘Magazine Dreams’ (Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures)

Majors, meanwhile, has alleged that Jabbari was the aggressor, claiming that she scratched at him and stole luxury items from his apartment, including a Rolex watch.

Jabbari, who is British, met Majors while working as a movement coach on Marvel’s 2023 film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, in which Majors plays the villain, Kang the Conqueror.

After news of the allegations broke, Majors was dropped by his management team, while the US Army pulled a number of advertisements featuring the actor from circulation. He was also reportedly dropped from a forthcoming adaptation of the Walter Mosley novel The Man in My Basement.

Disney also announced on Friday (27 October) that its live-action version of Snow White, starring Rachel Zegler (West Side Story), will also be delayed by a year. It will now open on 21 March 2025 as opposed to its original release date of 22 March 2024.

Elio, a Pixar science-fiction animated adventure, has also been delayed by over a year – now scheduled for 13 June 2025.

Magazine Dreams won the US Special Dramatic Jury Award at Sundance this year. Taylour Paige and Haley Bennett also star in the movie, along with Mike O’Hearn, Harrison Page and Harriet Sansom Harris.

The national domestic abuse helpline offers support for women on 0808 2000 247, or you can visit the Refuge website. There is a dedicated men’s advice line on 0808 8010 327. Those in the US can call the domestic violence hotline on 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)

Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org