Channing Tatum “Prays to God” for a Standalone Gambit Movie: “Write it into existence, my friend. Please”
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Channing Tatum is mostly associated with his roles in ‘Magic Mike,’ Step Up,’ and ’21 Jump Street,’ and most recently, he debuted in the MCU playing Gambit, one of the most notable X-Men, a role he wanted to play close to a decade.
Yes, Tatum is a hardcore Gambit fan and even Ryan Reynolds said in a recent social media post that “Remy LeBeau is grafted to his soul.” No matter whether you liked Tatum’s Gambit or not, you have to admit that the time to pitch for a standalone movie is now. Especially in light of the fact that mutants have officially been introduced to the MCU with the release of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ and there’s a live-action X-Men reboot on the horizon.
The actor and Gambit have quite a history. The Foxcatcher star and his longtime colleague and producer Reid Carolin had an idea they wanted to pitch to 21st Century Fox. It was going to be a standalone movie that follows the Gambit. It was imagined similarly to Deadpool in its raunchiness and humor.
While the 21st Century Fox team liked the idea, they wouldn’t fully approve if it’s Carolin or Tatum directing. Tatum said in a Variety interview,
They wanted anybody but us, essentially, because we had never directed anything.
Tatum really fell in love with the project so he decided that they would let someone else direct the movie.
The movie release date was set for March 2020, but sometime after, in 2017 Fox and Disney announced that they were in the process of a merger. Disney was going to take over key assets from 21st Century Fox. This means their film and television studios, all of their networks, and stakes in different companies.
Unfortunately, after the merger, the Gambit movie was one of the first projects that were canceled. This left Tatum feeling devastated and after this, he didn’t want to think about other potential Marvel movies that came his way. He said to Variety,
Once Gambit went away, I was so traumatized… I shut off my Marvel machine. I haven’t been able to see any of the movies. I loved that character. It was just too sad. It was like losing a friend because I was so ready to play him.
So, what’s on the horizon for Tatum now that he’s finally played Gambit on-screen? Well according to the actor himself – it’s hope and prayers. Tatum recently talked to Variety and revealed that he has talked to the execs at Disney and Marvel Studios and all that’s left now is to pray:
I sure hope so. From your mouth to God’s ears. Write it into existence, my friend. Please. […] I’ve course I’ve said it. I’ve been saying I want it for the last 10 years. It’s in Bob Iger and Kevin Feige’s hands. I pray to God.
Tatum also recently thanked Reynolds for having his back in the industry and bringing Gambit to life in an Instagram post:
These pictures are almost 10 years apart to the day. I sat in the audience when Ryan showed his first peek of Deadpool 1 to the world and I think I ran back stage right after and found him and I think I just hugged him and was like holy shit you did it man. It’s perfect. I didn’t know him really at all back then. But since then I can say that there is almost no one that has had my back in this industry more than Ryan. I thought I had lost Gambit forever. But he fought for me and Gambit. I will owe him probably forever. Cause I’m not sure how I could ever do something that would be equal to what this has meant to me. I love ya buddy. Shawn Levy as well. Truly such a brilliant creator on every single level. All things happen for a reason. I’m so grateful to be in this movie. It’s a masterpiece in my opinion. And just pure bad ass joy. I was literally screaming in the theater. LFG!! #deadpoolandwolverine
What do you say about the prospect of a Gambit movie? Let us know in the comments below!
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