Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
Jonathan Majors is a star. I don’t mean that in the sense of being someone who’s known by lots of people, i.e. a celebrity, but in the sense that he’s one of those rare, luminous humans who shines in a crowd. He’s a magnetic and intense actor who commands the screen and demands you follow him every second. He’s the real reason to go see “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
As the first hour of that film unfolded and veterans like Paul Rudd, Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas tap danced across the screen, I thought, OK, this is a fine little sci-fi movie. Then Majors’ character Kang arrived, and suddenly, I was sucked all the way in. He makes every scene special. It’s not just because of his great voice or the way that he can make almost any line sound like it has the gravity of Shakespeare. It’s not just because of his instrument — his face is rolling with Africanoid curves in a way that recalls a beautiful statue. His particular physiognomy salutes our ancestors — he carries them with him in his brow, his nose and his mouth. If archeologists reconstructed the Sphinx and found that face, I would not be surprised. He is Black male beauty personified.
In another universe, Majors would be the actor who plays Captain America — because who built this country? — but in this one, he’s Kang, the new supervillain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the antagonist strong enough to make all the heroes afraid, and the man who will tie together every major Marvel film from now through 2026 at least. But I’m OK with that because Marvel understands that you can’t have a great Marvel movie without an intriguing villain — the studio really respects that role.
But also,…
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