Channing Tatum is a Hollywood star who gets his pick of projects. From 21 Jump Street to The Vow, the actor has dabbled in films of various genres. But once upon a time that wasn’t the case and he had to do a film he hated even though it starred Dwayne Johnson.
The Magic Mike star confessed that he wanted to get out of the movie but couldn’t because he was contractually bound. He also revealed that the studio was going to sue him if he refused to do the film. However, surprisingly, the movie wasn’t a total flop. It went on to make $302 million at the box office and introduced many cinemagoers to the star.
Channing Tatum Abhorred This Hit Movie Of This Career
The Guardian reported that in a 2013 interview with Howard Stern, Channing Tatum revealed that he didn’t want to star in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. He had signed a three-picture deal in his budding career days with the studio but regretted it later on. The actor said:
“Look, I’ll be honest, I f*cking hate that movie. I hate that movie … They give you the contract and they go, ‘Three-picture deal, here you go.’ And as a young [actor], you’re like, ‘Oh my god, that sounds amazing, I’m doing that!’ Time goes by and you get other jobs… and you have a dream job you want to do. And … the studio calls up and they’re like, ‘Hey, we got a movie for you, we’re going to send it to you.’ And they send it to you, and it’s G.I. Joe.” 
Channing Tatum
The Step Up star stated that he hated the script of the film and didn’t even know if he wanted to play the character of Duke. He said, “The script wasn’t any good … and (I) didn’t want to do something that was, one, bad and, two, I just didn’t know if I wanted to be G.I. Joe.”
Tatum then revealed that he only agreed to do the project because he was threatened with legal repercussions for abandoning his contract. But this isn’t the only time Tatum has publically expressed his disdain for the film. Even a decade later, his hate is alive.
Channing Tatum Wanted His Character To Be Killed Off In The Sequel
Channing Tatum and Dwayne Johnson in the G.I. Joe franchise
In a Variety lie detector test that happened in January 2023, the actor said that he tried passing on G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra several times. The star also revealed that he requested that his character get killed off in the next film, G.I. Joe: Retaliation so that he didn’t have to continue any further than he was contractually obligated to. He said:
“The first one I passed on seven times, but they had an option on me and I had to do the movie. So the second one, I obviously just didn’t want to do that one either.”
His character Duke was indeed killed off within the first ten minutes of the sequel and then Dwayne Johnson became the star of the movie. The interviewer asked Tatum if he regretted that decision, to which he replied a resounding “No.”
Dwayne Johnson in G.I. Joe: Retaliation
However, the Bullet Train actor clarified that he doesn’t hate the G.I. Joe brand or overall franchise. In the 2013 Howard Stern interview, he expressed that he wanted to play Snake Eyes in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. Tatum said, “I love GI Joe: ‘Can I play Snake Eyes?’ And they’re like, ‘No, you’re not playing Snake Eyes, you’re playing G.I. Joe.’”
Also, once Stern reminded him that the film did well globally, the actor backtracked a little on his words. He said, “I’m super lucky and blessed to have been given that film that was really not all that bad.” However, even with these statements, it looks like Channing Tatum will think twice before starring in a G.I. Joe franchise in the future.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is on Netflix.
Source: Variety and The Guardian
