Colman Domingo has expressed his desire to one day join the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he is unsure about speculation that he would replace Jonathan Majors after Disney and Marvel studios cut ties with the actor last month.
ET's Denny Directo spoke with Domingo backstage at the 35th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala on Thursday night, hosted by Mary Hart.
The 54-year-old is acclaimed for his work in RustinNetflix's George C. Wolfe-directed biopic of legendary activist Bayard Rustin, and The color purpleTHE Directed by Blitz Bazawule reimaging the story made iconic in Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1982 novel in the Warner Bros. film. Pictures from 1985 and in the Tony Award-winning musical.
Now the Emmy winner is the subject of comic book movie rumors after writer Daniel Richtman claimed that Marvel Studios surrounds Domingo to intervene as their portrayer of Kang the Conqueror in upcoming films. “It's still early days, but I've heard that Colman Domingo is an option that has been discussed to replace Jonathan Majors in the role of Kang,” Richtman said.
But Domingo says he doesn't know how true that report is since he hasn't heard directly from the studio. “I don't know, I'm still looking at what I need to do at the moment… I know there are discussions and conversations, and I don't know to what extent that's true,” he admits . “My team doesn’t even tell me, I can’t say if it’s true or not.”
Still, the actor says he's honored to see his name thrown into the ring and received positively by fans.
“The fans are passionate,” he adds. “Somehow my name is out there in the world (and) I love the idea of just having your name called and someone speaking with love and kindness about something is a beautiful thing.”
Majors, 34, rose to fame after starring as Kang the Conqueror in Marvel's Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and gained critical acclaim after starring as Damian “Diamond Dame” Anderson in Michael B. Jordan's Creed III.
But following allegations of abuse from his Arrest on March 25, The majors were faced with rapid media fallout. The US Army quickly pulled the plug on its two commercials featuring the Marvel star and his management team. dropped him.
After two weeks of distressing testimony in a Manhattan courtroom, the the verdict returned one count of assault and one count of harassment stemming from an incident involving Majors' ex-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. He was acquitted of two other charges in a split verdict: He was found not guilty of one count each of third-degree intentional assault and second-degree aggravated harassment. The jury deliberated for about five hours over three days.
Majors is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 6 and faces up to a year in prison.
Almost immediately after his conviction, Disney and Marvel Studios severed ties with him, and his rise as a major player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe seemingly came to a screeching halt. The majors were previously attached to playing in Avengers: Kang Dynasty (2026) and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027).
Instead, the movie studio has since taken Avengers: Kang Dynasty from his slate and replaced it with Avengers 5. According to The Hollywood ReporterMarvel “intends to move forward with the film” but with a different direction. LokiMichael Waldron is now attached to the anticipated Avengers film.
In a 2022 interview with AwardsWatch, Domingo shared his excitement about joining the MCU, saying, “When it comes to Marvel and DC, I'm like, 'I think I'm ready now.' I'm trained, in shape, I think I want to play a bad guy. I just want to be the bad guy. I don't want to be the good guy. Actually, I want to do a really bad dirty job.”
While waiting to get confirmation from Kevin Feige himself, Domingo is pleased with the reception to his recent work, which earned him the Spotlight Award at this year's PSIFF.
“It's amazing. I mean, I always hear people say it's my year, and I feel like I embrace it,” Domingo told ET. “It's like, I don't know, many years of work and people amplifying it and saying they're proud. I feel that for every trip. Everyone has been doing their job for many years and is sometimes unrecognized, and now it seems like all the lights are on me and it's like it's not just for me, it's for my classmates. It's for everyone, you know?
He adds: “It absolutely makes it sweeter. It really does, because being here has taken me 33 years of working and working when no one is looking. Building work and creating work when no one is looking. didn't have a job. And so, I know that it feels like it's an accomplishment to let people know that they can keep a good work ethic, stay at it, keep doing it, stay whole, s Hold on to your dreams and make them a reality. Create for yourself, create opportunities for others and you know, maybe it's for you too.
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