‘Creed III’ actor Jonathan Majors set to go on trial in NYC for allegedly battering ex-girlfriend

NEW YORK — Actor Jonathan Majors is set to face trial in Manhattan on Wednesday on charges alleging he violently roughed up his ex-girlfriend during an argument in the back of a car that spilled on to the streets of Chinatown.

The 34-year-old Majors, who rose to fame with starring roles in “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” and “Creed III,” is charged with three counts of third-degree assault and related crimes for the alleged attack March 25 on Canal St. near Centre St. as the pair took a car service from Brooklyn to Manhattan. He faces up to a year in jail if convicted.

Prosecutors say he reacted violently when Grace Jabbari took his phone out of his hand upon seeing a text from someone else that read, “Wish I was kissing you right now.” Majors aggressively tried to get it back, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office alleges, by prying Jabbari’s finger off the phone and twisting her arm before striking her ear and drawing blood.

“When Ms. Jabbari then attempted to exit the vehicle, the defendant grabbed her, picked her up, and threw her back inside,” prosecutors wrote in recent court filings.

Jabbari, of the U.K., was later treated at a hospital for a fractured finger, a cut behind her ear and other injuries, according to court records. She’s expected to testify.

Prosecutors have been in contact with 11 witnesses and have a tranche of evidence to present at the trial, including photographs of Jabbari’s injuries, medical records from U.S. and U.K. providers, extensive surveillance footage, Majors’ phone records and police files, according to court documents. They’ve also cited a report by the London Metropolitan Police stemming from an incident in September 2022.

Majors, who was dropped by his management company and lost a string of lucrative deals following his arrest, denies the allegations and has attempted to discredit his accuser.

In June, he filed a countercomplaint against Jabbari alleging she’d assaulted him, and provided police a photo of her that wound up on a wanted poster. The NYPD briefly placed her under arrest in September and released her with a summons, but the DA quickly determined the case had no merit, and it was closed and sealed.

Assistant District Attorney Kelli Galaway said Majors’ lawyers provided prosecutors with a handwritten account from a witness they later discredited. The statement claimed the witness saw the couple “tussle” and Majors “gently” place Jabbari in the car.

But when prosecutors followed up with the witness, “He stated he had never written it, approved it, did not previously know it existed, and that the above statements were all false.”

Also in June, Majors was accused in a bombshell Rolling Stone exposé — which cited interviews with 40 people — of abusing multiple former romantic partners and colleagues. His lawyers gave the magazine six character witness statements from his exes, but when contacted, most of the women said they were false.

Lawyers for Majors and Jabbari did not respond to The News’ inquiries. A Bragg spokesman declined to comment.

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