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For Channing Tatum, Marvel movies weren’t just entertainment, they were a reminder of what could’ve been. The actor once poured years of passion and effort into a solo Gambit film, only to watch it crumble. And that sting stuck around.
“I haven’t been able to see any of the [Marvel] movies [since],” Tatum told Variety back in 2022. “I loved that character. It was just too sad. It was like losing a friend because I was so ready to play him.”
That heartbreak started way back in 2014. Tatum had been cast as Gambit, the smooth-talking, card-slinging mutant from the X-Men universe. The plan? Introduce him in X-Men: Apocalypse and follow it up with a solo film. But the rollout never happened.
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Despite Tatum being both the star and producer, Gambit faced one hurdle after another. The film cycled through directors like Doug Liman and Gore Verbinski, got trapped in endless pre-production loops, and finally flatlined in 2019 after Disney acquired Fox. Just like that, the dream was dead.
“Once Gambit went away, I was so traumatized,” Tatum admitted in the same interview. The loss hit hard, not just because he loved the character, but because he saw something wildly original in him.
Tatum especially loved Gambit’s fashion-forward attitude. “He could pull anything off,” he told Variety. “Most superheroes, their outfits are utilitarian. Batman’s got his belt. Gambit’s like, ‘No, this s— just fly, bro! This shit walked down the Paris runway last year.’ He’s just wearing the stuff that’s so dope because he loves fashion.”
The failed film didn’t stall Tatum’s career, though. After all, this was the same guy who broke through with Magic Mike in 2012. Based loosely on his own past as an exotic dancer, the film blew up and birthed a full-blown franchise. He followed it up with hits like 21 Jump Street, 22 Jump Street, Logan Lucky, White House Down, and This Is the End.
Then came Dog in 2022, which marked Tatum’s return to the big screen after a brief break. It was a special one, not just because he starred as an Army Ranger escorting a troubled military canine, but because he co-directed it with longtime partner Reid Carolin.
Tatum’s career zigzagged from dance floors to comedy to heartfelt road trips. But Gambit? That was the one that got away. Even years later, the wound hadn’t fully healed. Watching Marvel movies felt more like a reminder of a friend he never got to fully meet.
The trauma might’ve stopped him from pressing play, but it also proved one thing: Tatum didn’t just want to wear the suit, he believed in the character. And maybe, someday, that version of Gambit will finally hit the screen. But for now, the cards just never played out.
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