Jonathan Majors was fired from some roles following him being found guilty of reckless assault and harassment. The most high-profile one was Kang the Conqueror in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Majors was poised to take over from Thanos as the big overarching villain of the franchise. Thus, he played the time-traveling tyrant in three projects—Loki Seasons 1 & 2 and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. However, Kang was not the only part he was fired from.
Prior to his legal battle, Majors had been tapped to play Dennis Rodman from the Chicago Bulls in 48 Hours in Vegas, produced by Phil Lord and Chris Miller. Directed by Rick Famuyiwa and co-written by Jordan VanDina, the film would focus on Rodman's two-day "madcap" in Las Vegas during the 1998 NBA Finals. After being found guilty, Majors was let go from the film, and the project subsequently lost Lionsgate as a producer. Things are picking up once again for the movie, however, as it's found a new actor to portray the NBA star.
The Hollywood Reporter (first reported by The InSnider) has revealed that Get Out and Haunted Mansion's LaKeith Stanfield has been tapped to replace Majors as Rodman in the film. Per THR, Lionsgate is also back to produce. Funnily enough, Stanfield was tenuously connected to the MCU prior to Fantastic Four: First Steps coming out.
In April 2024, it was announced that Julia Garner (Inventing Anna) had been cast as the Silver Surfer in 2025's First Steps. Following the announcement, Stanfield took to Instagram to comment the following on the casting: "Thought it was going to be me, but ig." The post was then deleted. At the time, fans speculated two different possibilities regarding his statement.
Firstly, that it was a playful nod to him secretly portraying a variant of Galactus' most famous Herald. Secondly, that he had been up for the role, but had lost out on it. When the movie came out, there was no such variant to be seen—Garner's Shalla-Bal was the only Silver Surfer. There's little to no evidence to suggest Stanfield ever tested for the role (aside from a fan-casting from four years ago), which made the second option a highly unlikely one. Thus, the reason behind his oddly specific statement remains a mystery to this day.
Lionsgate Motion Picture Group President Erin Westerman released a statement regarding Stanfield boarding 48 Hours in Vegas:
"Dennis Rodman is more than a basketball player, more than a personality—he's an entire cultural phenomenon. His bold style and physical presence, combined with an iconic persona, created a larger-than-life impact on and off the court. There'll never be another like him. LaKeith and the incredibly talented team on this film will bring the legend to life in this most extraordinarily unbelievable story."
When the news broke of Majors' involvement in 48 Hours in Vegas, Deadline provided the following description for the film: "The spec is inspired by the crazy story of how NBA star Dennis Rodman went on a madcap adventure with his skittish assistant GM in the middle of the 1998 NBA Finals. The film will detail a budding friendship that neither one of them ever thought was possible but will end up solving both of their problems."
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is streaming on Disney+. Avengers: Doomsday will release on December 18, 2026.
What do you think about LaKeith Stanfield taking on the role of Dennis Rodman? Are you excited about 48 Hours in Vegas? Leave your thoughts in the comments!