Jonathan Majors, left, returns to court after a lunch break in his domestic assault trial, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
NEW YORK (AP) – A Manhattan jury will soon decide if Jonathan Majors is guilty of assaulting his girlfriend following two weeks of clashing narratives about whether the rising Hollywood star was the aggressor or victim during a chaotic struggle in the backseat of a car.
The court case has centered on allegations brought by Grace Jabbari, a 30-year-old British dancer who said the “Creed III” actor struck her on the side of the head, twisted her arm behind her back, and squeezed her finger until it broke during a dispute last spring.
In closing arguments that ended before lunch on Thursday, an attorney for Majors portrayed Jabbari as a compulsive liar who concocted a story of an abusive relationship as revenge after catching her boyfriend of two years texting another woman.
The 34-year-old actor, who did not testify during the trial, dabbed his eyes with a tissue as his attorney, Priya Chaudhry, implored the jury to “end this nightmare for Jonathan Majors.”
Prosecutors, meanwhile, said the actor “struck a blow” to his partner’s head that left her stunned in the backseat of a car. They said the assault was the latest escalation in Majors’ repeated attempts to “exert control” over his girlfriend through both physical and emotional violence, citing a past instance in which he allegedly urged her not to seek medical attention for a head injury because it could “lead to an investigation.”
The verdict may have implications far outside the Manhattan courtroom. Prior to his arrest in March, Majors’ “Kang the Conquerer” character was being set up as the next major supervillain in the Marvel universe. His prestige drama, “Magazine Dreams,” was postponed from its scheduled release earlier this month.
The struggle in the back of the car was not captured on video. But in their closing arguments, each side furnished security footage depicting scenes leading up to and after the dispute that they said underscored their point.
In one video played repeatedly to jurors by the prosecution, Majors can be seen “manhandling” Jabbari outside the vehicle, lifting her off the ground and placing her in the backseat “as if she was a doll,” according to Manhattan assistant district attorney Kelli Galaway.
Minutes later, footage showed Majors sprinting through the darkened streets of Lower Manhattan in an effort to evade Jabbari, who said she wanted details about the “romantic” text message she had seen on his phone. The video, according to the defense, served as proof that “Jonathan was trying to escape Grace and Grace kept attacking him.”
After Majors fled the scene, Jabbari followed a group of strangers she’d met on the street to a dance club, where she could be seen on grainy security footage ordering shots and using her injured hand to hold a champagne glass and sign a check.
During four days of emotional testimony, Jabbari defended her decision to follow the group, saying she had felt “welcomed” by the strangers in the wake of a traumatic situation. Prosecutors cited testimony from a doctor and photographs of Jabbari’s injuries taken the next morning as proof that the videos did not contradict her allegations of abuse.
At times, Chaudhry invoked the racial dynamic of the relationship, suggesting that police and prosecutors sided with Jabbari, who is white, without investigating whether she may have instigated the fight.
“Jonathan’s fear of what happens when a Black man in America calls 911 came true,” Chaudhry said, referring to the decision by Majors to call police on the morning after the incident to check on Jabbari, who had locked herself in the couple’s bedroom.
