Exclusive: Channing Tatum In Talks For Marvel Role That Isn’t Gambit
We have now learned that Marvel is in talks with Channing Tatum for an upcoming role. Surprisingly, the role they are talking about is not Gambit.
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As the Marvel Cinematic Universe grows, they’re bringing a lot more established actors into the franchise. Thanks to some work from a trusted and proven inside source for Giant Freakin Robot, we have now learned that Marvel is in talks with Channing Tatum for an upcoming role. Surprisingly, the role they are talking about is not Gambit.
Channing Tatum was attached to play Gambit, also known as Remy Etienne LeBeau, for an X-Men spinoff movie for years when the character was owned by Fox. That project never happened. While our source was able to share that the role Marvel is discussing with Channing Tatum is not Gambit, we weren’t able to learn what role he is discussing. Could the actor be talking about another X-Men character? Could he be considering a role in an entirely different story, like Fantastic Four? We learned that he’s talking to Marvel, and that the role isn’t Gambit, but the rest is up for speculation.
While it sounds like Gambit may be off the table for Channing Tatum, it’ll be interesting to find out what kind of role he’s looking at now. The star has been in a lot of movies over the years, but the success of the Magic Mike films took the spotlight for a while. He seems to like comedic roles, and isn’t afraid of action parts, so taking on the Marvel Cinematic Universe could be a good fit.
As superhero movies have grown over the years, there have been plenty of abandoned projects. When the X-Men were owned by Fox, there was a lot of talk around a solo project for Gambit. At one point Keanu Reeves was discussed, but ultimately, the biggest Gambit project with the most progress was set to star Channing Tatum. After Disney acquired Fox, there was some hope that the project could be revived. That now seems a lot more doubtful.
We were unable to confirm whether this news means that another actor has been cast as Gambit for future X-Men appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Are they choosing to cast Channing Tatum in another role because he just didn’t want to play that part after all this time? Was it because they are using another actor for Gambit? It would be surprising if they brought back Taylor Kitsch for the role, but not impossible. Or is it because they have no plans to use Gambit at all? That would be a shame, because the cajun card dealer would be a fun addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There have been a lot of superhero movies that have failed to make it to the screen over the years, but Channing Tatum’s unmade Gambit movie has been one of the most talked about. Perhaps because with so many updates on it, many still held out hope that it would come back around at some point.
It’s worth noting two things. First, that just because Channing Tatum is talking to them about a new Marvel role, doesn’t mean he’ll take it. At this point they are in talks. Negotiations could fall through. The actor could come around and say that after everything, he’s actually only interested in Gambit. We can’t predict how these talks will go, we can only report that our trusted source says they’re happening.
The second thing to note is that Vin Diesel plays Groot for Guardians of the Galaxy. We never see that actor in live-action on the screen. Because of this, he could always take another role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe without confusing audiences. Similarly, it is entirely possible that Channing Tatum is talking about a Marvel role that may not entirely cut out the possibility of him playing Gambit someday. Of course, holding onto hope may only be more frustrating for some fans, but the Gambit project has been talked about for so long, it’s hard to say that it’s ever 100% off the table, and even if talks go well for this new role.
