Simon Kinberg, who’s been a producer on many of the X-Men films, feels very strongly that Channing Tatum is the perfect fit for the role of Gambit.
Ever since the franchise started to hit theaters, fans have been disappointed that their favorite Cajun card-thrower hasn’t been prominently featured and would really like to see him get in on all the action. The movies have been missing one of their most valuable players from the comics, with the exception of Taylor Kitsch’s lackluster version in the disappointing X-Men: Origins. But according to the Dark Phoenix director, there’s really only one man to play the part.
Channing Tatum’s been set to play Gambit in a standalone film that’s had some trouble in development and the project’s future is now in question. But nevertheless, while speaking to Variety, Kinberg stated that he believes Tatum’s the chosen one and the only person who can get it done.
“I would love to see [Gambit] happen. I love the idea of Channing playing Gambit. I think we have a great script for it, and I think it’s a role he was born to play. It’s a character I grew up loving, and I know the fans love, so I suspect—I hope it will happen.”
As you may or may not know, Gambit was set to be a romantic comedy, which would have been fitting given both the actor and character’s backgrounds. But after the disappointment that was the 2015 Fantastic Four reboot, the budget for the flick was cut and things continued to stall out from there. And now the project’s on hold at Disney.
Now that the merger has finally completed, the future of the X-Men is unknown. Dark Phoenix is set to release this June, but The New Mutant still doesn’t have a release date and the reshoots still haven’t occurred. Actress Maisie Williams also recently stated she has no idea what’s going on with the film. So if The New Mutants is in that much disarray, it doesn’t bode well for the foreseeable future of Gambit.
In any case, the MCU’s about to shift gears and complete its Infinity Saga, so they’ll be needing a ton of new heroes to fill those empty slots left by the seasoned vets hanging it up. Whether Disney keeps the current lineup of individuals playing the mutant heroes or recasts brand new actors, Channing Tatum should certainly be kept in the conversation when it finally does come time for Gambit to make his triumphant return to the silver screen.