Jonathan Majors made a surprise visit to a screening of Magazine Dreams, where he took the stage to personally introduce the film and share the journey of its creation and release.
Majors, who not only stars in but also produced the film, made it clear that Magazine Dreams is more than just another project—it’s a deeply personal exploration of self-perception, ambition, and the human condition.
“This movie, this particular picture, is about the person in the mirror,” Majors said to the audience. “The person looking back at you in the mirror, they know everything. They know when you’re weak. They know when you’re strong. They know when you’re hurting. They know when you heal. They know when you’re true friends.”
Magazine Dreams follows Killian Maddox, an aspiring bodybuilder obsessed with perfecting his physique in hopes of gracing the cover of a prestigious fitness magazine. His relentless pursuit of this dream consumes his life—both physically and mentally—as he battles personal demons, social isolation, and the pressures of an unforgiving world.
“The idea of bodybuilding, this idea of looking at yourself and trying to perfect something externally, is the drive of our protagonist, Killian Maddox,” Majors said. “But then there’s another conversation that develops… When you look at yourself in the mirror, you can’t see the inside. You understand the inside, or you think you do. But life teaches you what’s on the inside.”
This is the first film that Majors has produced. He didn’t shy away from discussing the difficulties of getting the film from script to screen, especially given the industry’s unpredictability.
“You think making the film is hard. You think eating all that food is hard. This is actually the hardest part—trying to get the film from…into your hearts and minds. That takes effort,” he said. “Not just getting distribution, but people… This isn’t the Marvel Universe. We can’t guarantee $100 million at the box office. It’s quite the opposite for us here.”
Calling Magazine Dreams his “love letter” to filmmaking, Majors expressed his deep admiration for cinema as a medium of storytelling and human connection.
“I do believe that this film is a love letter to filmmaking. It’s a love letter to character pieces. It’s a love letter to humanity,” he said passionately. “It will, in many cases, ask you, in some cases confront you, and in some cases force you to look at something in an individual that may or may not be in yourself.”
Despite the hurdles, Majors talked about the passion and dedication poured into the film by everyone involved, from the director Elijah Bynum to his co-stars Haley Bennett and Taylour Paige. He urged the audience to spread the word, emphasizing that while big-budget blockbusters have built-in audiences, independent films like Magazine Dreams rely heavily on word-of-mouth support.
“Tell a friend, tell a friend, tell a friend,” Majors said.
Check out the full speech. Get your tickets to Magazine Dreams here.
