There are strong rumours this morning that the planned Gambit movie may be in jeopardy, with reports that Channing Tatum is set to quit the project. Tatum has been attached to the film since pretty much day one, and apparently, the likes of Lea Seydoux have been testing recently as Fox and director Rupert Wyatt look to cast his co-star in the movie.
But The Wrap is now reporting that Tatum's deal for the movie "is in jeopardy of falling apart", and that the actor plans to quit the project. The trade offhandedly mentions that the film is currently working to find a female lead, and that French actress Lea Seydoux is one name that they are considering.
Unfortunately, the report makes no mention of exactly what the part will be. The description of the role wasn't incredibly detailed, but described the target actress as mid-20s-early 30s, and "beautiful, smart, tough, fiery and unpredictable." Knowing what we know about Gambit's history in the comics, it's likely that this is a description of Bella Donna Boudreaux, a childhood friend of Gambit's (real name Remy LeBeau) and a member of the Assassins Guild. She is arranged to be married to Remy - a member of the rival Thieves Guild - but things wind up going really wrong.
Furthermore, whilst there's been no official statement on this, Channing Tatum's reps are quoted in the article as admitting "something is up". What the exact problem is, though, isn't clear. It'd be a major shock if Tatum did walk away, not least because he was at San Diego Comic-Con earlier in the month promoting the movie. Furthermore, with production due to start in a month or two, in order to hit an October 2016 release date, time is not on the project's side. Were Tatum to quit the film, then you'd have to assume that its very future was under threat.
Other sources close to the film's crew suggest that director Rupert Wyatt will soon have to find a new leading man. As of now, plot and cast details of the film are still scarce. "Gambit" is set to hit US theatres on October 7, 2016 following the release of "X-Men: Apocalypse" on May 27, 2016. Tatum will next be seen in this Christmas release "The Hateful Eight", in which he stars alongside Samuel L Jackson and Kurt Russell. The 35-year-old actor will also co-star George Clooney and Scarlett Johansson in "Hail Caesar" which will arrive in the US on February 5, 2016.