Jonathan Majors Domestic Abuse Trial: Cross-Examination of Ex Begins

Jonathan Majors’ ex-girlfriend said she wanted “help” in safely exiting her relationship with Majors, but also wanted to protect the Marvel actor when police showed up to their apartment in March following the actor allegedly attacking her in a car the night before.

“I wanted to say: ‘help me, please,’” Grace Jabbari tearfully told a New York courtroom during Majors’ domestic violence trial on Wednesday. “But I felt scared to do that. I alluded to it in the safest way I felt possible. I loved him still, it was so confusing and I didn’t want to get him in trouble.” 

It’s the first time Jabbari has spoken about the moments leading up to Majors’ arrest on March 25. The night before, Majors wanted to make Jabbari “feel pain” when prosecutors allege he twisted her arm behind her back, squeezed her fingers, delivered a blow to the back of her head, and shoved her back into a car after she saw Majors receive a romantic text from another woman and grabbed his phone. 

The following morning, Majors returned to their apartment where he allegedly found Jabbari on the floor and unresponsive, prompting him to call police. In those moments where police were questioning her about her injuries to her head and finger, Jabbari testified she “desperately needed help, [for] someone just to get me out” but knew Majors was “not trusting police, and what they would do to him as a Black man, and I didn’t want to put him in that situation.” 

“I could hear Jonathan in the next room,” Jabbari told the court. “So, I didn’t want to say exactly what happened, but I also saw this as a moment to have a bit of help in leaving the relationship.”

Wednesday was the second day of Jabbari’s testimony, previously giving an overview of the couple’s tumultuous relationship on Tuesday. Majors sat with his defense attorneys as Jabbari frequently welled up while detailing the alleged abuse she suffered during their two-year relationship. The trial is the first time the former couple has seen each other in person since the actor’s arrest on March 25, due to a temporary restraining order.

Majors, 34, was charged with four misdemeanor counts of assault and harassment, and faces up to a year in jail if convicted. The Creed III and Lovecraft Country actor pleaded not guilty and has maintained his innocence, with his attorney Priya Chaudhry claiming Jabbari was the aggressor that night and made the accusations out of “revenge” for Majors cheating on her. 

Majors’ attorneys began cross-examination of Jabbari on Wednesday, just after noon. Chaudhry questioned Jabbari’s drinking habits and brought up Majors’ Christian background. 

During the first day of Jabbari’s testimony, the professional dancer, 30, said although the early stages of their relationship were a blissful whirlwind after meeting on the set of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in summer 2021, things had shifted by that December. Majors would allegedly fly into a “rage,” attempt to control her behavior, throw glass objects around her, blame her for his emotions, and routinely threaten to commit suicide in the aftermath of such incidents, Jabbari told the court. Jabbari testified that she felt responsible for Majors’ emotions and grew increasingly isolated from her friends and family because she felt like she was “lying” by hiding aspects of her relationship from them. 

While the charges hinge on Majors’ alleged actions in the back of the car, Majors’ legal team focused on Jabbari’s actions afterwards, saying she went clubbing with strangers instead of returning to the couple’s shared apartment. Majors’ attorneys claimed Jabbari called Majors 32 times that night and took pills when she returned home. When Majors came home and allegedly found her passed out on his bathroom floor, he called 911 out of concern, his lawyers told the court. 

However, Jabbari on Wednesday offered a different version of events. She described herself as tipsy but not overly intoxicated when she left the club she visited after the incident, and was safely able to get herself home. Once home, she claimed she noticed that her right middle finger was visibly injured and turning colors, as well as feeling like there was dried blood behind her ear. When she attempted to sleep, Jabbari testified she couldn’t lay on the right side of her body due to the pain. It was then she decided to take two over the counter sleeping pills, something Jabbari told the court she frequently did when she had trouble sleeping. 

At the close of her testimony on Wednesday, Jabbari said, “It has felt like the abuse that I was in has just not ended.”

Jabbari’s cross-examination is expected to resume on Thursday, with the case likely to stretch at least another week. While Rolling Stone previously reported prosecutors had obtained testimonies from several women who previously dated Majors, who have alleged he was physically and/or emotionally abusive to them during their relationships, it is unclear if they will make their way into the trial. (A dozen sources told Rolling Stone in June that Majors had a history of domestic violence with two previous romantic partners. Majors denied that he was ever abusive in any relationships.)

It is also unclear if a London police report from September 2022 — which resulted in Jabbari receiving medical care — will make its way into court. London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed to Rolling Stone in November that there is an ongoing investigation into the incident that included allegations of “physical assaults.” 

Before his March arrest, Majors was on track to have his biggest year yet, following the releases Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. He was also receiving early Oscar buzz for his performance as a lonely bodybuilder with violent fantasies in Magazine Dreams. However, Majors was quickly dropped by both his management and publicist teams in the wake of the accusations, and Searchlight Pictures indefinitely postponed Magazine Dreams’ December theatrical release. All that seems to be left on Majors’ calling card is Marvel, who was planning on centering the next edition of the franchise on Majors’ character, the multiverse villain Kang the Conqueror, starting with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in 2026. 

Jonathan Majors’ ex-girlfriend said she wanted “help” in safely exiting her relationship with Majors, but also wanted to protect the Marvel actor when police showed up to their apartment in March following the actor allegedly attacking her in a car the night before.

“I wanted to say: ‘help me, please,’” Grace Jabbari tearfully told a New York courtroom during Majors’ domestic violence trial on Wednesday. “But I felt scared to do that. I alluded to it in the safest way I felt possible. I loved him still, it was so confusing and I didn’t want to get him in trouble.” 

It’s the first time Jabbari has spoken about the moments leading up to Majors’ arrest on March 25. The night before, Majors wanted to make Jabbari “feel pain” when prosecutors allege he twisted her arm behind her back, squeezed her fingers, delivered a blow to the back of her head, and shoved her back into a car after she saw Majors receive a romantic text from another woman and grabbed his phone. 

The following morning, Majors returned to their apartment where he allegedly found Jabbari on the floor and unresponsive, prompting him to call police. In those moments where police were questioning her about her injuries to her head and finger, Jabbari testified she “desperately needed help, [for] someone just to get me out” but knew Majors was “not trusting police, and what they would do to him as a Black man, and I didn’t want to put him in that situation.” 

“I could hear Jonathan in the next room,” Jabbari told the court. “So, I didn’t want to say exactly what happened, but I also saw this as a moment to have a bit of help in leaving the relationship.”

Wednesday was the second day of Jabbari’s testimony, previously giving an overview of the couple’s tumultuous relationship on Tuesday. Majors sat with his defense attorneys as Jabbari frequently welled up while detailing the alleged abuse she suffered during their two-year relationship. The trial is the first time the former couple has seen each other in person since the actor’s arrest on March 25, due to a temporary restraining order.

Majors, 34, was charged with four misdemeanor counts of assault and harassment, and faces up to a year in jail if convicted. The Creed III and Lovecraft Country actor pleaded not guilty and has maintained his innocence, with his attorney Priya Chaudhry claiming Jabbari was the aggressor that night and made the accusations out of “revenge” for Majors cheating on her. 

Majors’ attorneys began cross-examination of Jabbari on Wednesday, just after noon. Chaudhry questioned Jabbari’s drinking habits and brought up Majors’ Christian background. 

During the first day of Jabbari’s testimony, the professional dancer, 30, said although the early stages of their relationship were a blissful whirlwind after meeting on the set of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in summer 2021, things had shifted by that December. Majors would allegedly fly into a “rage,” attempt to control her behavior, throw glass objects around her, blame her for his emotions, and routinely threaten to commit suicide in the aftermath of such incidents, Jabbari told the court. Jabbari testified that she felt responsible for Majors’ emotions and grew increasingly isolated from her friends and family because she felt like she was “lying” by hiding aspects of her relationship from them. 

While the charges hinge on Majors’ alleged actions in the back of the car, Majors’ legal team focused on Jabbari’s actions afterwards, saying she went clubbing with strangers instead of returning to the couple’s shared apartment. Majors’ attorneys claimed Jabbari called Majors 32 times that night and took pills when she returned home. When Majors came home and allegedly found her passed out on his bathroom floor, he called 911 out of concern, his lawyers told the court. 

However, Jabbari on Wednesday offered a different version of events. She described herself as tipsy but not overly intoxicated when she left the club she visited after the incident, and was safely able to get herself home. Once home, she claimed she noticed that her right middle finger was visibly injured and turning colors, as well as feeling like there was dried blood behind her ear. When she attempted to sleep, Jabbari testified she couldn’t lay on the right side of her body due to the pain. It was then she decided to take two over the counter sleeping pills, something Jabbari told the court she frequently did when she had trouble sleeping. 

At the close of her testimony on Wednesday, Jabbari said, “It has felt like the abuse that I was in has just not ended.”

Jabbari’s cross-examination is expected to resume on Thursday, with the case likely to stretch at least another week. While Rolling Stone previously reported prosecutors had obtained testimonies from several women who previously dated Majors, who have alleged he was physically and/or emotionally abusive to them during their relationships, it is unclear if they will make their way into the trial. (A dozen sources told Rolling Stone in June that Majors had a history of domestic violence with two previous romantic partners. Majors denied that he was ever abusive in any relationships.)

It is also unclear if a London police report from September 2022 — which resulted in Jabbari receiving medical care — will make its way into court. London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed to Rolling Stone in November that there is an ongoing investigation into the incident that included allegations of “physical assaults.” 

Before his March arrest, Majors was on track to have his biggest year yet, following the releases Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. He was also receiving early Oscar buzz for his performance as a lonely bodybuilder with violent fantasies in Magazine Dreams. However, Majors was quickly dropped by both his management and publicist teams in the wake of the accusations, and Searchlight Pictures indefinitely postponed Magazine Dreams’ December theatrical release. All that seems to be left on Majors’ calling card is Marvel, who was planning on centering the next edition of the franchise on Majors’ character, the multiverse villain Kang the Conqueror, starting with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in 2026.