Once upon a time, Jonathan Majors was on the fast track to becoming one of the biggest new talents in Hollywood. With projects like Creed III and Ant-Man and the WASP: Quantumania, Majors established himself as a blockbuster draw, but a film called Magazine Dreams was set to establish Majors as a heavyweight in the drama genre as well. Majors and his image would go through many trials and tribulations after facing assault and harassment charges and Magazine Dreams would be dropped by its original studio, Searchlight Pictures.
Deadline is now reporting that Briarcliff Entertainment has given Magazine Dreams a second chance at distribution. Briarcliff Entertainment purchased the rights to distribute the Jonathan Majors film with plans to release in the first quarter of 2025. Tom Ortenberg’s company seems to not shy away from movies that are plagued with controversy as they are also famously putting out a film depicting Donald Trump’s rise in the real estate business with The Apprentice and releasing it right in the middle of election season. Briarcliff will also be making an awards push for that film as they did with another hot-button topic film — Spotlight.
Magazine Dreams stars Majors as an amateur bodybuilder who struggles with severe psychological issues while dreaming of stardom. The buzz was very positive and looked to be a possible awards contender for Majors. “Magazine Dreams is the kind of film that will likely inspire a lot of discourse,” said our own Chris Bumbray in his review, “with the buzz out of Sundance being overwhelmingly positive, although the nihilism did rub some the wrong way. It’s a tough watch, but sometimes films like this are essential.” You can check out the rest of Bumbray’s review of Magazine Dreams right here.
Majors is bouncing back with a new role in the upcoming film Merciless. The project was developed by producer Christopher Tuffin, who is working on a new global media venture that’s meant to have a disruptive nature and “refuses to let the court of public opinion and selective prosecution undermine great art and artists.” Tuffin said, “In graduate school, I had the good fortune to study screenwriting under Blacklist scribe Millard Lampell and learned from him the dangers of letting politics undermine due process and deprive artists of their careers. I consider it an honor and a privilege to be working with Jonathan who is such a great talent now that this matter has been adjudicated.“
Martin Villeneuve added, “Merciless intertwines themes of possession, revenge, and personal justice within a haunting narrative. It explores the psychological descent of John, played by Majors, and the supernatural forces challenging his sanity.“