In a shocking turn of events for one of the most up-and-coming young actors in recent memory, Jonathan Majors has been promptly fired by Marvel following his conviction for assault and harassment of his (now ex) girlfriend following a car altercation in March.

Majors was becoming an increasingly important part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU, in recent years for his supervillain role of Kang the Conqueror. He was seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, as well as the Disney+ television series Loki. He was even announced to be starring as the chief villain in the likely next Marvel blockbuster, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.

Now, his arrest and conviction on domestic violence charges have immediately derailed that promising career.

The Hollywood Reporter claims that Marvel was even “building its entire current story arc around Majors’ Kang the Conqueror” character.

The question now is whether the Disney-owned superhero studio will recast the role of Kang, or revise that story arc to center on another character. Rumors are that the MCU will be going the latter route, with Loki creator Michael Waldron already having been hired to rewrite the draft of Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, and the working title being changed to Avengers 5 (suggesting Kang may be removed entirely).

Marvel has recast a few times in the past — such as when Don Cheadle stepped in for Terrence Howard as the James Rhodes character, or when Mark Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton as the Hulk for The Avengers. But the studio's thinking may be different this time around.

With such a high-profile court case already tarnishing its image, Marvel may not want to draw any more attention to its misstep in casting Majors' for Kang, and opt to divert further coverage by moving in a new story direction.

Marvel and Disney were undoubtedly already preparing contingency plans even before the verdict was announced, and the news on Monday just makes it official. Marvel fans were also calling for the actor's ouster after the verdict.

Jonathan Majors‘ legal troubles also offer a cautionary tale for Marvel, as it may force the studio to rethink the long-term, multi-project contracts it offers its actors in the future.