Channing Tatum is making one final 'Magic Mike' film.
Channing Tatum knows how much people want to see Matthew McConaughey reprise his role as Dallas in Magic Mike's Last Dance. Tatum has already got the ball rolling on the third installment of the franchise -- but says there is still time for McConaughey to return.
“I didn’t know if Matthew would want to do it, he loves what he did in the first movie so much. He was like, ‘I don’t want to touch it,’” the 41-year-old actor tells ET.
“I mean, I’m not saying anything about mine or anyone else’s performances. He was the star, he was the movie, it was special. I can’t tell you how many times I had to watch the movie because of different edits Steven [Soderbergh] would do, and I would just fast forward to when he blew the fire, and I’m like, ‘Yeah, he's a swan song,’” Tatum adds.
In the original 2012 film, McConaughey played Dallas, the man responsible for the all-male revue where Tatum’s character, Magic Mike, showed off his dancing talents. While Tatum returned for the film’s follow-up, Magic Mike XXL, McConaughey did not.
In November, Tatum revealed that he would be starring in the third and final film of the franchise, written by Reid Carolin and directed by Steven Soderbergh. Carolin and Soderbergh held the job's for the first film of the franchise.
For the latest film, Tatum has already begun rehearsals. “Every day for three hours a day in a garage in the Valley,” he says about the practice space.
“We always laugh because if anybody ever came by and looked in the garage to see what we're doing, I can't even describe to you like what we were doing,” he shares.
Next month, Tatum is heading to London and Italy to begin filming. As for what fans can expect, “You’re getting 100 on this one,” he says.
“Put it to you this way, I’m putting everything and the kitchen sink on it because in the first two movies, we really had to be honest about the reality of dancing in that world. Yet it’s not the best dancing in the world but it's fun,” he adds. Magic Mike's Last Dance will premiere exclusively on HBO Max.
In the meantime, Channing served double duty as lead actor and director for Dog. In the film, the star plays Briggs, an Army ranger who sets off on a road trip to a fellow soldier's funeral. Along the way he picks up the late soldier's former fury partner, Lulu, and the two embark on a hilarious journey.
"It came from a really personal place," Tatum says about the film. "I lost my puppy, I went on a road trip and that was sort of the emphasis on the story." After experiencing the complications that come with working as an actor and director on the film, he offered his girlfriend, Zoe Kravitz, some personal insight on pulling double duty, ahead of her directorial debut, Pussy Island.
When asked about the advice he gave Kravitz, Tatum shared, "I just think that you need twice the time if you're going to be in the movie."
Dog hits theaters Feb. 18.
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