Magic Mike: Channing Tatum Would Return To The Franchise Under One Condition
Channing Tatum is officially done with the "Magic Mike" franchise. The film trilogy, which takes inspiration from Tatum's history as a dancer (although it is notably not based upon it), released its third and final installment, "Magic Mike's Last Dance," in early 2023. Now, maybe the picture's negative reviews convinced Tatum to pull the plug, or perhaps he clocked its dismal box-office haul, or maybe the star was simply ready to move on. Regardless, Tatum has made his stance abundantly clear. During a 2023 interview with People, Tatum stated, "I am done. We did it all. We chewed all the meat off the bone on that one. There's nothing left to do."
Except, that's not entirely true. There's apparently one condition that, if met, would coax Tatum back into the magic. Although he was probably joking, Tatum admitted that he'd return for another "Magic Mike" film if Warner Bros. signed off on a geriatric sequel. "That would be the only thing I would come back for," said Tatum. "'Grumpy Old Strippers.' Like 'Grumpy Old Men: Septuagenarian Strippers.'" Again, this is almost certainly a joke because People specifically mentioned that Tatum was laughing while delivering that particular news.
Grumpy Old Strippers wouldn't be Channing Tatum's first off-kilter comedy
While Channing Tatum might have been joking with People when he suggested an older version of "Magic Mike," it's worth mentioning that the actor's credits include a long list of bizarre comedies. In 2022 alone, he lent his conviction for silliness to "The Lost City" and "Bullet Train." The former saw him portray a pampered book cover model, and the latter saw him question his sexuality for Brad Pitt. And if you look even further into his filmography, there's everything from "Free Guy" (where he plays a 'dudebro' videogame avatar) to "This is the End" (where Tatum's one of the best — and most NSFW — cameos). For better or worse, Tatum is committed to keeping it absurd.
Tatum seemingly began his path toward comedy back in 2006 with "She's the Man," which co-starred Amanda Bynes and riffed on William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night." Before that point, his career was set to be a string of stereotypically attractive-yet-bland love interests, but afterward, Hollywood realized that Tatum's willingness to put everything on the line for a good joke could make for memorable screen time. And honestly? "Grumpy Old Strippers" would be the perfect continuation of that trend.