Jonathan Majors’ trial is delayed a second time after his attorneys point out ‘discrepancies’ in the case
Prosecutors in New York were ready to present their case in a jury trial against Jonathan Majors on Wednesday after a monthlong delay.
However, the trial was postponed a second time, as Judge Rachel S. Pauly scheduled the next court date for Sept. 15, a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office confirmed to The Times. A firm trial date is expected to be scheduled during the later September hearing, the DA’s office said.
Majors, who faces misdemeanor assault and harassment charges, appeared virtually in New York criminal court on Wednesday. His attorneys said they found “deficiencies” in the prosecutor certificate of compliance, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Such a legal filing is intended to let the court and defense know that they have showed all material and information found during discovery in the case.
Jonathan Majors is due back in a New York court on Sept. 6 to begin the trial for his domestic violence case, which stems from a March incident.
Majors’ attorneys Priya Chaudhry and Seth Zuckerman, who appeared in court, did not immediately respond to The Times’ requests for comment Wednesday afternoon.
In early August, it was the prosecution who had asked for more time as attorneys said they were still obtaining discovery for trial, dragging the case into September. At the Aug. 3 hearing, Majors had appeared with fellow actor and partner Meagan Good by his side.
At the time, Chaudhry, who has maintained Majors’ innocence, said in a statement that the actor has “had his life, career, and reputation torn apart.”
“Yet he remains unwavering in his determination to be absolved from this harrowing ordeal,” the statement continued.
News Analysis: What Jonathan Majors’ dramatic rise and fall says about race and justice in Hollywood
The actor, who this week faces his first court date in a domestic dispute, may suffer more career damage than his Hollywood counterparts do. Is race a factor?
Majors was arrested in March after he dialed 911 following an alleged “domestic dispute” with a 30-year-old woman outside of a Manhattan apartment. The accuser alleged that Majors, 33, struck her on the face with an open hand and cut her ear, and grabbed her hand. The woman also accused Majors of pushing her into a vehicle, causing her to fall backward during the altercation.
She was treated at a hospital for minor injuries to her head and neck, according to police.
After his arrest, Majors’ rising career seemed to take a nosedive. He reportedly has been dropped by his publicity and management firms and also dropped by several prospective film projects and advertisement campaigns. It remains unclear whether Marvel will recast his part as Kang the Conqueror, whom Majors played in “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” The studio was gearing up to make Kang the next supervillain of the current phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And in July, Majors’ character had appeared in a trailer for Season 2 of Disney+ show “Loki.”
The ‘Loki’ Season 2 trailer features time travel, Jonathan Majors’ return and Ke Huy Quan’s debut. Tom Hiddleston and Owen Wilson return.
In June, a report by Rolling Stone accused Majors of physically and emotionally abusing a different previous girlfriend, and emotionally abusing another former partner, around the time he was a student at Yale University’s drama school. The report also alleged he had behaved aggressively toward crew members on film sets as well as drama school classmates.
Majors’ attorney Dustin A. Pusch denied the allegations and said the Rolling Stone report, which relied on statements from more than 40 individuals who were close to or familiar with Majors, was based “entirely on hearsay” with “seriously flawed” sourcing.
“Rolling Stone embarked on a mission to dig up dirt on Jonathan Majors,” Pusch said in a statement, “in order to falsely paint him as a violent and abusive Black man, facts be damned.”
The biggest entertainment stories
Get our big stories about Hollywood, film, television, music, arts, culture and more right in your inbox as soon as they publish.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
