Jonathan Majors breaks silence in first interview: 'One of the biggest mistakes of my life'

Jonathan Majors, in his first interview since a jury found him guilty of assaulting and harassing his ex-girlfriend, is standing behind his denial of hurting Grace Jabbari.

Upon hearing the verdict, the former Marvel actor said he was "shocked and afraid," in a new ABC News interview, released in part Monday on "Good Morning America."

"I'm standing there and the verdict comes down. I say, 'How is that possible based off the evidence — based off the prosecution's evidence, let alone our evidence?" Majors, 34, told "ABC News Live" anchor Linsey Davis.

An extended version of the interview will stream on "ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis" on Monday at 7 p.m. ET, with a special including additional reporting to stream on ABC News' "IMPACT x Nightline" beginning Thursday on Hulu.

A six-person jury convicted Majors of assaulting Jabbari last month, concluding a two-week trial that the actor hoped would salvage his damaged reputation and restore his status as an emerging Hollywood star.

The Manhattan jury found Majors guilty of one misdemeanor assault charge and one harassment violation. The "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" star was also acquitted of different charges of assault and aggravated harassment.

Majors told Davis he plans to appeal.

His attorney Priya Chaudhry previously told USA TODAY in a statement that the actor "still has faith in the process and looks forward to fully clearing his name."

Jonathan Majors sentencing

Majors' sentencing is set for Feb. 6. He faces the possibility of up to a year in jail for the assault conviction, though probation or other non-jail sentences are also possible.

Jonathan Majors talks new girlfriend Meagan Good, not seeing daughter due to case

Majors, who declined to give testimony during the trial, told Davis he decided to provide his side in the sit-down interview "as part of healing."

"I'm really blessed. I'm surrounded by people who love me, who care about me," Majors said, calling it "very hard, and very difficult, and confusing in many ways."

"But I'm standing," Majors said.

He also said he hasn't seen his daughter because of the case.

"Everything has kinda gone away," he said. "It's just me now, and my lovely partner Meagan (Good) and my dogs."

Jonathan Majors says picking up Grace Jabbari was one of his 'biggest mistakes'

Majors faced multiple misdemeanor counts involving assault, aggravated harassment and harassment after his arrest in March over a confrontation with Jabbari, a British dancer and movement coach, during a car ride in Manhattan. She said he struck her in the head with his open hand, twisted her arm behind her back and squeezed her middle finger until it fractured.

Majors pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

In closing arguments on Dec. 14, Majors' lawyer portrayed Jabbari as a compulsive liar who concocted a story of an abusive relationship as revenge after catching her boyfriend of two years texting another woman.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, said the actor "struck a blow" to his partner's head that left her stunned in the backseat of a car. They said the assault was the latest escalation in Majors' repeated attempts to "exert control" over his girlfriend.

The "Creed III" actor now admits that picking up Jabbari was "one of the biggest mistakes of my life."

"I pick her up, I put her back in the car. I'm trying to get rid of her," he said. "I'm trying to get away from her, as the video shows, you know? Second biggest mistake of my life, I try to keep her in the car."

Jonathan Majors found guilty of assaulting ex-girlfriend

Majors denied twisting Jabbari's arm, saying he is confident he did not cause the injuries.

"She went to grab the phone. I held the phone. I pulled the phone back," he said. "She came on top of me, squeezed my face, slapped me. That's all I remember."

He said he is unaware of how the injuries occurred.

"I wish to God I knew. That would give clarity," he said. "That would give me some type of peace about it."

Instead he says he was "reckless with her heart" and denied "ever" striking a woman.

"I'm an athlete. I'm a sportsman. I know my body. I know how it moves," he said. "I know my strength, or lack thereof, you know? None of that was employed on her."

In a statement to USA TODAY Monday, Jabbari's lawyer, Brittany Henderson, said Majors' denial is "not at all surprising."

"Mr. Majors continues to take no accountability for his actions. His denigration of our jury system is not dissimilar from the above-the-law attitude that he has maintained throughout this legal process," Henderson said. "The timing of these new statements demonstrates a clear lack of remorse for the actions for which he was found guilty and should make the sentencing decisions fairly easy for the Court."

She continued: "Ms. Jabbari will continue to speak the truth and seek justice in the appropriate forums in a continued effort to respect our legal process."

USA TODAY has reached out to lawyers for Majors.

Jonathan Majors on Coretta Scott King comments, Grace Jabbari's alleged head injury

Prosecutors during the trial said Majors attempted to control Jabbari through both physical and emotional violence, citing a past instance in which he allegedly urged her not to seek medical attention for a head injury because it could "lead to an investigation."

"They will ask you questions, and as I don't think you actually protect us, it could lead to an investigation even if you do lie and they suspect something," Majors allegedly wrote to Jabbari on Sept. 22, 2022.

Jabbari replied via text that she would tell doctors she bumped her head, assuring Majors: "Why would I tell them what really happened when it's clear I want to be with you?"

Majors told Davis that the alleged injuries were not real and that he received the texts the morning after an argument.

"I received these text messages and I was like, 'This is literally a nightmare,'" Majors said. "I don't know what's wrong. I don't know what happened. I don't know what injuries you're talking about."

He continued: "From my experience, from my point of view, a young Black man in any situation with anyone honestly, if the authorities get involved in any way, there's going to be conversation, conflict, trauma."

Prosecutors also played audio of a conversation between the former couple where the actor can be heard criticizing her for returning "home drunk" after a night out and for not supporting him, pointing to Coretta Scott King's support of Martin Luther King Jr. as an example.

Majors provided context to the conversation.

"It was me trying to give an analogy of what it is I'm aspiring to be," Majors told Davis. "I was attempting — and I did a terrible job at it, apparently — I was attempting to motivate, to enlighten, to give perspective as in to what it is I was hoping to get out of the relationship."

Jonathan Majors' text messages, audio recordings to ex-girlfriend unsealed in assault trial

Jonathan Majors on Marvel dropping him from projects: 'It's God's plan'

Shortly after the verdict, a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly confirmed to USA TODAY that Marvel Studios and the Walt Disney Co. dropped Majors from all future projects following the actor's conviction. The move threw years of plans for its cinematic universe in disarray.

As the superhero studio prepared Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it cast the highly acclaimed Majors as the antagonist Kang the Conqueror. The character was expected to span several films and series as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's next-phase answer to Thanos, the villain of "Avengers: Endgame."

Marvel universe drops Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror after conviction. Now what?

Majors told Davis when he learned he had been dropped it felt "like the world stopped."

"It's like you work so hard for things, and then it's done," he said.

Majors confidently said he thinks he deserves a second chance working in Hollywood.

"Heck yeah, I do. I pray I do," he said. "But it's God's plan and God's timing."

Contributing: Naledi Ushe and Edward Segarra, USA TODAY; Jake Coyle, The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jonathan Majors interview: Marvel actor breaks silence, talks trial