X-MEN ‘97 Season 2 Was Originally Going to Feature Jonathan Majors as Rama-Tut/Kang Before Marvel Changed Plans

One of the biggest surprises in X-Men ’97 Season 2 is the arrival of Kang, voiced by John de Lancie, the beloved Star Trek: The Next Generation actor. But that role almost went to someone very different.

Resurfaced comments from former showrunner Beau DeMayo have confirmed that Jonathan Majors was initially lined up to voice Rama-Tut/Kang before Marvel Studios cut ties with the actor.

The revelation adds another interesting chapter to the complicated story of Kang, a character who was once positioned as the MCU’s next major villain before Marvel pivoted in a completely different direction.

Majors first entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Loki Season 1 as He Who Remains, the mysterious figure who revealed he had won the Multiversal War and spent countless millennia maintaining the Sacred Timeline.

Marvel later expanded the Kang mythology in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, introducing Kang the Conqueror along with Victor Timely and the Council of Kangs, which included Immortus, Scarlet Centurion, and Rama-Tut.

At one point, Kang was expected to become the centerpiece of the Multiverse Saga, with reports suggesting Kang the Conqueror would eventually evolve into The Beyonder.

Instead, Marvel shifted gears, replacing Avengers: The Kang Dynasty with Avengers: Doomsday and putting Doctor Doom at the center of its future plans.

A resurfaced post from DeMayo on X confirmed that Majors was supposed to continue his association with the character by voicing Rama-Tut/Kang in X-Men ’97 Season 2 before those plans changed.

That revelation also gives new context to fan theories that the series had been planting Kang-related easter eggs from the beginning.

Several visual nods throughout the revival had already sparked speculation that the animated version of Rama-Tut might somehow connect to the Variant briefly seen during the Quantumania post-credits sequence. Whether that was ever the intention remains unknown.

Marvel’s decision to move away from Majors came after the actor was found guilty in December 2023 of one count of reckless assault in the third degree and a charge of harassment as a violation following an altercation with his then-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. Marvel Studios ended its relationship with the actor shortly after the verdict.

Majors has continued to maintain his innocence. Since then, he completed a 52-week domestic violence intervention program and has been attempting a career comeback following the release of Magazine Dreams, which at one point generated Oscar buzz before its delayed release. His next project is The Daily Wire’s Run Hide Fight: Infidels.

Of course, Marvel’s Kang plans may have already been on shaky ground even before the legal issues.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania failed to connect with audiences, and many fans weren’t sold on either the film itself or the more theatrical portrayals of Kang’s Variants, who were originally expected to play major roles throughout the Multiverse Saga.

As for X-Men ’97 Season 2, the story picks up with the X-Men scattered across different points in history after the events of the first season.

Separated through time, the team must find a way back together while, in the 1990s, mutant hatred continues to grow and new enemies begin making their move.

The nine-episode season features Ross Marquand as Professor X, Matthew Waterson as Magneto, Ray Chase as Cyclops, Jennifer Hale as Jean Grey, Alison Sealy-Smith as Storm, Cal Dodd as Wolverine, Lenore Zann as Rogue, and George Buza as Beast.

With X-Men ’97 now bringing Kang into its world under a different voice actor, it’s hard not to wonder what Majors’ performance might have sounded like.

Considering how closely Marvel Animation and Marvel Studios were weaving together Multiverse concepts at the time, it certainly feels like there was a much bigger plan for Kang before everything changed.

X-Men ’97 Season 2 is now streaming weekly on Disney+.