Have you seen Magazine Dreams, the newest movie from Johnathan Majors? Well, if you have not, I am here to tell you that you definitely should. We all know Majors from several different projects. He was in Creed III with Michael B. Jordan, The Harder They Fall with Regina King, LaKeith Stanfield, Idris Elba, and Delroy Lindo, as well as having an excellent showing in Loki as Victor Timely and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as Kang the Conqueror.
All of these roles were absolutely perfect for Majors, and he executed them like a well-trained assassin. Then came a stumble from grace—following some allegations and his conviction of a misdemeanor, he was removed as Kang, his latest movie was shelved, and he lost multiple projects.
The Fallout and Resurgence of Johnathan Majors
It was quiet after that. We didn’t see or hear from him for a while, and then he was suddenly back—with a different attitude and presented alongside Meagan Good. Of course, many thought it was just a PR stunt to get him back in good graces. And while that may have been the case as people alleged, they do genuinely seem happy and fairly carefree. It wasn’t until after this reintroduction of Majors that rumors started flooding in about the possibility of him returning to Marvel to reclaim his role as Kang the Conqueror and all his variants.
While this all still remains unconfirmed, it did get audiences talking. And as we all know, Marvel loves to get in on the gossip. As these rumors spread, the news also dropped that his shelved movie, Magazine Dreams, had a release date. At that point, I just knew that if they were bringing this movie out of the shadows, it was because there was something they wanted us to see. And it could only speak to him as the talented actor that he is.
What Magazine Dreams is All About
And that is exactly what this movie does. The short version, non-spoiling, is that his character, Killian Maddox, is an aspiring bodybuilder. He spends every moment he can trying to accomplish this goal while obsessing over another bodybuilder named Brad Vanderhorn. He considers himself Brad’s number-one fan and has been writing him letters for years with no response. You can tell that he is a little mentally delayed, which could be due to what happened to him as a child or because of the steroids and random bumps of crack he does throughout the movie. His core motivation for everything that happens is that he is going to be on the cover of magazines.
Jonathan Majors’ Performance in Magazine Dreams
The way this movie takes hold of you at first and then just doesn’t let go until the final minutes is insane. Jonathan Majors portrays this nerdy, lonely grown man with anger issues due to a multitude of things happening in his life, and he makes you feel every emotion as he presents it. You feel the anger, the sadness, and the desperation. His dreams only make sense to him, but he has the support of his grandfather, whom he takes care of.
One thing he said that stuck with me—he was on a date, and he is so socially awkward that the only thing he knows how to talk about with interest is bodybuilding. He went into this very intense soliloquy about what it takes to really be a bodybuilder and accomplish those goals, and his final two lines were:
“You have to do something big and important, or no one is going to remember you when you’re dead. They’re going to put pictures of me in magazines, and everyone will know—Killian Maddox was here.”
Why Magazine Dreams is a Must-Watch
At that moment, I, as well as the other moviegoers in the theater, were 100,000% locked in. His acting at any point in the movie never let up. He stressed you out, he made you cry, and he made you see what real obsession and desperation look like from the point of view of a Black man who has had a conflicting and complicated upbringing. The movie as a whole is simply amazing, and honestly, if there was a movie for him to make a comeback on, it would have to be this one. There’s no other way to spin it. This was spectacular, and it just goes to show that his range and skill can’t be touched.
If you haven’t had a chance to see Magazine Dreams, I would recommend it wholeheartedly. It’s interesting, it has some funny moments to relieve the tension, and while the supporting actors are good, Majors outshines them in every scene. This is his movie. At no point did I think he lost a step or his footing like some movies tend to do. At no point could I predict what was going to happen next. And we love unpredictability.
The movie is definitely a must-see. 10s across the board for me.
More Black Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Movies
If you’re into Black-led films like Magazine Dreams, pushing boundaries, check out this list of 7 Black Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Movies to Watch in 2025: Read more here.
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