Jonathan Majors isn’t slowing down anytime soon. With his latest film Magazine Dreams in theaters and after booking the revenge thriller Merciless, he’s now set to lead True Threat, the latest action-packed feature from director Gerard McMurray. And if the logline is any indication, we’re in for a gritty, heart-thumping ride.
In True Threat, Majors plays Special Forces operative Vernon Threat, a father on a mission and a man with nothing to lose. After his teenage son is killed by a Harlem gang called The Apollo Kids, Vernon takes matters into his own hands. His path to justice (or vengeance, depending on how you look at it) takes him into The Carter — a 20-story project building that serves as the gang’s fortress. Floor by floor, Threat fights his way to the top to confront their leader, who also happens to be his former mentor, Shallow. Talk about a plot thick with tension.
But this isn’t just another shoot-‘em-up. The film is expected to blend jaw-dropping action with themes of fatherhood, loyalty, and the burden of community accountability. There’s also a cultural heartbeat here: True Threat will spotlight 52 Blocks, a uniquely Black American martial arts style born out of prison boxing and street fighting. It marks the first time the discipline is getting a major cinematic spotlight, and fans of hand-to-hand combat films should take note.
The project comes from CAT5, a new action-focused film label launched by Alexis Garcia with backing from Fifth Season. McMurray co-wrote the script with Hodge K. Johnson, and Larnell Stovall — the action mastermind behind films like Undisputed 3 and Falcon and the Winter Soldier — is leading the film’s stunt and fight choreography. If that lineup doesn’t scream intense, I don’t know what does.
Majors, who first made waves in The Last Black Man in San Francisco, has since stacked his resume with heavyweight roles — from Lovecraft Country to Creed III (which helped deliver a record-breaking box office for the franchise) to his villainous turn as Kang/He Who Remains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His most recent film, Magazine Dreams, premiered at Sundance and just hit theaters this month.
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing for the actor. Last year, he faced legal controversy, but his ex-girlfriend dropped the federal lawsuit in November 2023. With that chapter seemingly behind him, Majors appears focused on his craft and career — both of which continue to lean into powerful, complex roles.
As for True Threat, it doesn’t have a release date just yet, but it’s already shaping up to be a raw, visceral entry in the action genre with something to say and fists that land hard.