Fox’s long-gestating Gambit movie passed through many directorial hands over the years, but there was always one constant: it was going to star Channing Tatum. The project was officially cancelled earlier this year, however, once Disney – Fox’s new owners – wiped its release date from the slate. There was still a chance that Tatum could get to play the role in the MCU, but the latest intel is saying that it’s not going to happen anymore.
Sources close to We Got This Covered – the same ones who told us that a Nova movie was in active development and that the Inhumans were being rebooted in the Ms. Marvel show, both of which have been confirmed – have told us that Marvel has plans to reboot Remy LeBeau in the MCU, but Tatum won’t play the part. We’ve been informed that Gambit is likely to be part of the X-Men line-up in the franchise and because of the different direction they’re going in, Tatum’s no longer a good fit for the character.
One actor Marvel’s eyeing though is The King’s Man lead Harris Dickinson, whose star is certainly on the rise. Before he shows up in the WWI-set Kingsman prequel though, you can see him as Prince Phillip – replacing Titans‘ Brenton Thwaites from the original – in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. At just 23, the British actor is 16 years younger than the 39-year-old Tatum, so it’s clear that Kevin Feige and co. want a much more youthful Gambit in the MCU.
Dickinson is just one name on the studio’s wishlist though and not necessarily the frontrunner. It’s unclear who else they might be eyeing, but Tatum definitely won’t be showing up on the rebooted X-Men team. That must be a bit of a blow for the actor, too, who signed up to play the Ragin’ Cajun for his own film back in 2014. And that was after he narrowly missed getting the role in 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Apparently, he wasn’t “born to play” Gambit, after all.