'I Would Do Lots Of Terrible Things' To Make A Gambit Movie Jokes Channing Tatum

The behind-the-scenes story of Channing Tatum's "Gambit" movie is quite heartbreaking. The project had been stuck in development hell for years, and just as it was about to go ahead and begin development, Disney acquired Fox and put it on ice. The merger robbed superhero fans of a potentially great movie about the card-wielding mutant, and Tatum never got to make his dream project. However, the actor still hopes to star in a film about the Cajun mutant, and he's joked about going to extreme lengths to make it happen.

"I would kill kittens ... I would do lots of terrible things to make that happen," Tatum joked on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." He was clearly exaggerating, but it's clear that the "Magic Mike" star really wants to get this project up and running.

Time will tell if Tatum gets to star in his own "Gambit" movie, but at least he got to portray the hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tatum's Gambit is one of many Marvel heroes and villains to appear in "Deadpool & Wolverine," where he teams up with X-23 (Dafne Keen), Blade (Wesley Snipes), and Elektra (Jennifer Garner) to fight Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin) and her goons in The Void. That said, he's feeling cautiously optimistic about reprising the role down the line, as "Deadpool & Wolverine" leaves the door open for more Gambit appearances in the MCU.

One of the post-credits scenes in "Deadpool & Wolverine" shows Ryan Reynolds Merc with a Mouth visiting the Time Variance Authority to prove that Johnny Storm (Chris Evans) has a potty mouth. However, eagle-eyed fans might have spotted Gambit on one of the monitors as well, suggesting that he survived the fight with Cassandra Nova's posse in The Void. While speaking with Collider, Tatum said that he believes his character is still alive, but it's up to Marvel to decide whether it's worth continuing the fan-favorite X-Man's big screen story.

"You never know. I mean, literally, I could never be in another Marvel movie again, and it wouldn't surprise me because I've had it in my hand before, and it's gone away," Tatum said. "I'm always grain-of-salting it, but I'm hoping that Kevin [Feige] will allow me in."

Fortunately, Feige is a fan of the character. During his interview with "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," Tatum recalled a conversation he had with the Marvel boss about Gambit's place in the MCU. Feige said that he loves the character but needs time to figure things out about his place in the franchise, which wasn't a firm rejection. The good news, though, is that "Deadpool & Wolverine" has created a potential path for Gambit moving forward, and Tatum credits Ryan Reynolds for making it happen.

Given that "Deadpool" was a passion project for Ryan Reynolds, he can probably empathize with Channing Tatum's passionate desire to play Gambit. Perhaps this is why he used his sway to get Gambit into "Deadpool & Wolverine," but, either way, Tatum credits Reynolds for keeping his dream alive. During the aforementioned conversation with Jimmy Fallon, Tatum revealed that it was the "Van Wilder" star's idea to feature the laconic Southern mutant in the "Deadpool" threequel. Furthermore, he's been very vocal about his appreciation for Reynolds on social media. 

"I thought I had lost Gambit forever. But he fought for me and Gambit," Tatum wrote on Instagram while sharing a story about how he remembers watching the first "Deadpool" movie. "I will owe him probably forever. Cause I'm not sure how I could ever do something that would be equal to what this has meant to me. I love ya buddy."

Meanwhile, Reynolds also hopes that Tatum gets more opportunities to play Gambit down the line. He's even offered to appear as Deadpool in the proposed movie, assuming that it ever comes to fruition. Now it's just up to Kevin Feige and his peeps over at Marvel Studios to greenlight the project and make everyone happy.