When the news surfaced that Channing Tatum would be reprising his role as Gambit in the 2026 film Avengers: Doomsday, it came with plenty of fan excitement. Tatum’s cameo as the superhero in Deadpool & Wolverine was well-received, and it was also a long time coming. Tatum was initially expected to play Gambit in a 2019 solo film that didn’t come to fruition.
Now, six years later, Tatum is back, and his character is ready for a larger role in Avengers: Doomsday. While Gambit has been a role Tatum has previously expressed the desire to play, even before the 2019 film was cancelled, he recently revealed that he also auditioned to play another superhero—one of Marvel’s biggest names.
Channing Tatum Auditioned to Play Thor, but ‘Didn’t Really Want’ the Part
In a surprising revelation, Tatum shared details of an audition he had many years ago to play the role of Thor, which ultimately went to Chris Hemsworth. Since debuting in the role for the 2011 film Thor, Hemsworth has been a mainstay in the Marvel universe, appearing in both solo movies and multiple Avengers films.
From the sound of it, the part of Thor going to Hemsworth was also just fine with Tatum, who revealed he didn’t even really want to play the superhero during an interview with Variety.
“I didn’t really want to be Thor,” he says. “But I wanted to audition in front of Kenneth Branagh.”
“After I did one take, [Branagh] was like, ‘You’re not allowed to move. Put your hands on this chair.’ And I froze,” the actor recalls. “He nailed my crutch. I spent the next five years really trying to learn stillness.”
Fortunately for Tatum, Hemsworth and Marvel fans, everything worked out just fine. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Hemsworth playing the role of Thor, as he’s become a fan-favorite and integral part of the MCU.
Channing Tatum Was Initially Torn on Playing Gambit in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
As much as Tatum loves the character Gambit, and the opportunity to reprise the role in Avengers: Doomsday was a big one, he admitted to Variety that he was iffy on it for one reason—his daughter.
Tatum noted that the movie would be filmed overseas (it is) and said he didn’t want to be away from his daughter for that long.
“I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do ‘Avengers,’ because I was going to have to be gone, but I was like — it’s OK. She’s going into middle school now,” Tatum said.
The 45-year-old actor also offered another insightful perspective on the situation, and it’s one that highlights how much he appreciates the work he does, something that he used as a lesson for his daughter. Specifically, how excited he is about this specific Marvel project.
“Did Daddy get to go to work? Or did he have to go to work?” he recalls asking Everly. “Those are two different sentences.”
As much as Tatum is surely enjoying the opportunity to bring Gambit to a bigger stage, fans are just as excited to see the longtime actor do so as well.
Related: Marvel’s ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Unveils Change to Movie Logo
