Channing Tatum Was Given A Career-Changing Note During His Thor Audition

Thanks to the release of Steven Soderbergh's 2012 film "Magic Mike," the life story of Channing Tatum is pretty well-known. He was working as a roofer as a young man and moonlighting as a stripper. In 2000, he got paid $400 to be a background dancer in Ricky Martin's "She Bangs" music video, which led to a series of TV commercials and modeling gigs. These, in turn, led to auditions for major film projects, his first being a small role in Thomas Carter's 2005 sports film "Coach Carter." His handsome face and laidback demeanor led immediately to more and more film work. His big break came in 2006 when he starred in the dance-off movie "Step Up," a film that spawned a franchise. 

By 2010, he was a major movie star, having led films like "Stop-Loss," "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," and "Dear John." Throughout, Tatum continued to hone his craft, becoming an incrementally better actor with each outing. He didn't yet have a lot of range, but he certainly had a lot of natural charisma, able to be a Hollywood leading man. It was about this point in his career that Tatum decided to audition for the title in Kenneth Branagh's "Thor," one of the first films in the then-nascent Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tatum didn't get the role — it went to Australian actor Chris Hemsworth — but he would eventually join the MCU in 2024's "Deadpool & Wolverine" playing the X-Men character Gambit. He will return as Gambit in future MCU movies. 

Tatum talked about his "Thor" audition in a recent interview with Variety, and he confessed that he actually didn't really want the role. He just admired Kenneth Branagh and wanted to audition for the guy. During his audition, though, Branagh gave him a piece of direction that Tatum has carried with him ever since. It seems that Branagh merely told him to be less physical in his performances. After that, Tatum was suddenly that much more confident as a performer. 

To reiterate: Tatum didn't want to be Thor. He likely had other prospects, both dramatically and commercially. 2011 would turn out to be a banner year for Tatum anyway, starring in the comedy "The Dilemma," the historical war film "The Eagle," the actioner "Haywire," the crime flick "Son of No One," and the romcom "10 Years," which he also produced. "Thor" would have gotten in the way of all those projects. Tatum admitted he just wanted to get in front of Branagh, who had most recently directed the 2007 mystery "Sleuth." 

Tatum said that Branagh, after a single take, corrected an acting error he had been making for almost six years. In his words: 

"After I did one take, [Branagh] was like, 'You're not allowed to move. Put your hands on this chair.' And I froze. [...] He nailed my crutch. I spent the next five years really trying to learn stillness."

Tatum doesn't say how he was being overtly physical in his "Thor" audition, but Branagh clearly wanted his character to be declarative and stentorian. Tatum had never really played a role like that, playing dancers, fighters, or restless characters. A "crutch" in acting terms is a repeated technique or habit that an actor will employ to fill a scene. Sometimes, however, those techniques are used as distractions from the dialogue, and Tatum realized he has been using his physicality in that way. One might notice a difference in Tatum's performances after that. He seemed more confident, less distractible, and more mature. 

Tatum's next film, "Roofman," is due in theaters on October 10, and he will be playing Gambit in the 2026 film "Avengers: Doomsday." Sadly, the actor has not yet worked with Kenneth Branagh. He'll have to accept the Coen Bros., the Wachowski Sisters, Steven Soderbergh, and Derek Cianfrance as runners-up.