2 more women accuse Jonathan Majors of physical, emotional abuse in new report
Two more women have accused Jonathan Majors of physical and emotional abuse.
Two former girlfriends, Emma Duncan and Maura Hooper, accused the "Creed III" actor of abuse in a new report from The New York Times published Thursday, following the actor's conviction for assaulting and harassing ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari in December.
The Times investigation also revealed a history of "volatility" on the set of HBO's "Lovecraft Country," in which Majors starred as Atticus Freeman, including contention with female co-workers that led to complaints to the network.
A rep for both Duncan and Hooper, who is familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly, confirmed the accuracy of the New York Times report to USA TODAY Friday.
Majors' attorney Priya Chaudhry described his past relationships with Duncan and Hooper as a "love triangle" and "toxic" but denied allegations of abuse and knowledge of complaints from co-workers on the set of "Lovecraft Country," in an emailed statement to USA TODAY Friday.
USA TODAY has reached out to HBO for comment.
The four-month Times investigation includes accounts from 20 people who knew or worked with Majors, including some identified anonymously out of fear of career repercussions, as well as statements submitted to the prosecution in Majors' assault trial.
Rolling Stone in June published a similar report, detailing allegations of abuse toward former classmates, crew members and former romantic partners over the course of a decade.
In the Times report, Duncan accused Majors of throwing her around, choking her and bruising her. Hooper alleges she endured emotional abuse from Majors. Both dated Majors before his rise to fame and described him as a controlling and threatening figure in their lives, isolating them from friends and career pursuits.
In one of several instances of violence early on in their relationship, Duncan alleged, during a July 2016 trip to Chautauqua, New York, the former couple had an argument where Majors threatened to strangle and kill her.
She alleged in that same month, when she visited Majors in Sante Fe, New Mexico, a violent altercation occurred in a hotel room when she began packing to leave. Duncan accused Majors of pushing her into a couch, choking her and telling her he was "going to kill" her. She said he then threw her across the room and said, "I'm going to make sure you can't have children."
Duncan accuses the actor of picking her up and slamming her body into a mailbox at their Harlem, New York, apartment in October 2016, causing bruising, she said. After the incident, as well as others, Majors threatened to kill himself, she claimed.
Hooper claimed that, while she was dating Majors, he was controlling about where she could go, who she spoke with and how she behaved. She alleges the actor did not allow her to speak to anyone about their relationship and threatened suicide at one point when she learned of an affair.
Hooper alleged when she got pregnant a few months into their relationship, she scheduled an abortion. When Majors took her to the medical clinic, which had a policy that required an escort home after the procedure, he did not come to pick her up, she alleged. When Hooper called him, she said, he told her he was going to a rehearsal.
Hooper also claimed a year after the couple broke up when Majors found out she was dating someone he knew, he called her and, in an argument, told her he hoped she would kill herself and said he was "going rip you out of my heart the way they ripped our baby out of you."
Majors denied the physical abuse accusations in a statement shared by his attorney to USA TODAY. He also denied some of the emotional abuse accusations and did not recall the exact details of others. He described the relationships as "mutually emotionally volatile," adding that he is "choosing to take responsibility for his role" in the "toxic" relationships.
"Looking back, he is embarrassed by some of his jealous behavior and has been addressing these personal, lifelong depression issues with counseling," wrote Chaudhry in an email shared with USA TODAY Friday.
Additionally, three female crew members from the set of "Lovecraft Country" are said to have submitted a complaint to HBO about Majors' behavior on set, including that the actor was argumentative, treated them differently than male colleagues and that he, in one instance, made a derogative, racially charged comment about her appearance, and in another case, told a crew member she did not belong on the set.
Chaudhry also provided photos to the Times and USA TODAY, in an effort to prove his relationships with Duncan and one of the "Lovecraft Country" crew members after the alleged incidents were "friendly."
If you are a victim of domestic violence, The National Domestic Violence Hotline (thehotline.org) allows you to speak confidentially with trained advocates online or by the phone, which they recommend for those who think their online activity is being monitored by their abuser (800-799-7233). They can help survivors develop a plan to achieve safety for themselves and their children.
Contributing: Morgan Hines
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