Title – Magazine Dreams (2023)

Director – Elijah Bynum (Hot Summer Nights)

Cast – Jonathan Majors, Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige, Michael O’Hearn

Plot – Lonely and troubled Killian Maddox (Majors) finds solace and purpose in the world of amateur bodybuilding but his quest to conquer his hobby is setting him on a path to self-destruction.

“Never stop dreaming”

Review by Eddie on 25/03/2026

Victim of a pre-distribution hell, when unrelated allegations against its main star Jonathan Majors were made public all the way back in 2023, with Elijah Bynum’s feature dropped from an awards friendly release towards the tail end of 2023 before finally seeing the light of day with little fanfare in 2025, Magazine Dreams is the film that might have been and a sad reminder to what we lost from Major’s when his personal life derailed his promising career.

Riding hot off the heels of indie successes such as The Last Black Man in San Francisco and The Harder They Fall, Emmy nominated show Lovecraft Country and about to launch it into the big time off the back of a lead role in Creed 3 and as Marvel’s new key villain Kang, Major’s appeared for all intents and purposes to be ready to take Hollywood by storm and it was clear many involved saw his turn as Dreams troubled Killian Maddox as an awards contender as this Taxi Driver done by the way of the world of bodybuilding transpired around his incendiary turn.

A powerful and dominating presence throughout, as Majors lonely and misunderstood Maddox tries his best to fit into society, make human connections and become a key player in the professional bodybuilding circuit, Majors turn is a fiercely unforgettable one and as he and Bynum explore the crumbling world of Maddox it may be at times hard to sit back and watch but at the same time there’s a magnetism to Majors turn that you can’t look away from, even though some viewers tolerances of the many hits Maddox receives across the films two hour run time may not be able to see them make it all the way through.

In many ways following familiar patterns of films that have explored the isolating and deflating worlds of social outcasts, with the likes of Joker, Her, Into the Wild and The Wrestler being called to mind while watching Bynum’s drama, there’s still enough unpredictability and human emotion on display here to make Dreams stand on its own two feet and by supporting Majors turn with Australian cinematographer Adam Arkapaw’s lens work and frequent David Fincher collaborator Jason Hills score, Dreams is a well-rounded package that succeeds in shining a spotlight on some uncomfortable subject matters that deserve to be explored.

About as far away from a crowd-pleaser as you’d get, it’s incredibly hard to watch Dreams without having the sad and sorry facts of Majors downfall outside of the film present in your mind but when watching the film purely as it was intended to be, with an at the time budding superstar pouring his blood, sweat and tears into the central performance, Dreams becomes a powerful and poignant call to arms about the importance of not letting fellow human beings slip into the cracks of society to be lost forever.

Final Say –

Not always an easy watch and undoubtedly affected by the aftermath of Majors personal troubles, Magazine Dreams is a stunning dramatic achievement built around a powerhouse central performance that could well have been an awards contender.

4 deltoids out of 5