Channing Tatum (born Channing Bryan Isaac Tatum
Anderson on April 26, 1980) is an American actor and
former male fashion model. After beginning his
career as a male fashion model, he has branched out
into acting roles, appearing in the films Coach
Carter (2005), Supercross: The Movie (2005), She's
the Man, then Step Up, and A Guide to Recognizing
Your Saints, all of which were released in 2006.
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Early life
Tatum was born in Cullman, a small city in
Alabama, the oldest of eight children; he has
French, Irish and Native American ancestry. His
family moved to Mississippi when he was six,
although he visits Alabama, where his mother's
family still lives, every summer. Tatum grew up in
the bayous near the Mississippi River, where he
enjoyed a rural existence, including "All the
rattlesnakes and alligators a boy could possibly
chase, fishing every day, Pop Warner football
league, stuff like that". Tatum was athletic while
growing up, playing football, soccer, track,
baseball and martial arts, and had "a lot of
energy", although he says that "Girls were always my
biggest distraction in school". During the ninth
grade, he was sent to a military school, where he
played on the football team. Tatum won a football
scholarship to Glenville State College in West
Virginia, although he soon lost interest in the
sport and turned down the scholarship, citing his
dislike of the demands of playing football.
Tatum returned home, feeling that he'd disappointed
his parents.He soon worked in construction, an
animal nursery, and at a clothing store. During this
time, he developed an interest in club dancing.
Career
Tatum's first experience was in the fashion industry
as a male fashion model. He was first cast as a
dancer in Ricky Martin's She Bangs music video,
after an audition in Orlando, Florida; he was paid
$400 for the job. He subsequently signed with a
modelling agency in Miami, and appeared in Vogue
magazine. He soon appeared in the pages of Citizen
K, and Contents, as well as campaigns for
Abercrombie and Fitch, Nautica, Dolce & Gabbana,
American Eagle Outfitters, and Emporio Armani. Tatum
has also starred in a few television commercials for
American Eagle Outfitters, Pepsi and Mountain Dew,
and was picked as one of Tear Sheet Magazine's "50
Most Beautiful faces" of October 2001.
Tatum has said that his modeling career has helped
him with his life, specifying that "It's made my
life, and my family's life, a lot easier, because I
never knew what I wanted to do and now they don't
really have to worry about me anymore. I've been
able to explore life, and through exploring it I've
found that I love art, I love writing, I love
acting, I love all the things that make sense to me.
And I've been given the chance to go out and see the
world, and to see all the things out there. Not
everyone gets that chance".
Tatum began his acting career in 2004, appearing in
an episode of the television series CSI. His first
feature film role was in 2005's high-school drama,
Coach Carter, playing Jason Lyle, a street smart
basketball player opposite Academy Award Nominee
Samuel L. Jackson; Tatum also appeared in Twista's
"Hope" music video, which accompanied the film. In
the same year, Tatum had an uncredited bit role in
War of the Worlds when posing as boy in a church, a
factory endorsed top cycle racer in Supercross, and
part of the supporting cast in Havoc. Although Tatum
has said that he "love[s] modeling", he has taken a
break from the profession to concentrate on his
acting career, saying that he prefers making more
mature movies.
Tatum was originally scheduled to play Gengis Khan
in director Sergei Bodrov's epic, Mongol, but was
replaced by actor Tadanobu Asano. Tatum also
auditioned for the role of Gambit in X-Men: The Last
Stand, but was not cast as the character was
eventually removed from the film. The film's
producer, Lauren Shuler Donner, noticed Tatum and
cast him in the film She's the Man, where he plays
the love interest of Amanda Bynes' character. The
film opened on March 17, 2006.
Tatum in Step Up, 2006
Tatum's most recent roles were in Step Up, a
dance-themed romance which opened on August 11,
2006, and the 1980s-set drama A Guide to Recognizing
Your Saints, in which he plays Antonio, a street
youth in Astoria, Queens. Tatum has described the
latter film as his "first dramatic role"; his
performance received positive notices at the 2006
Sundance Film Festival, where the film premiered.
Tatum's next film role will be in director Kimberly
Peirce's Stop-Loss, about a soldier returning home
from the Iraq War.
Personal life
In August 2006, columnist Janet Charlton reported
that Tatum has been dating his Step Up co-star,
Jenna Dewan, since 2005; the two met on the film's
set.
Awards
2006
Special Jury Prize
Dramatic, for the ensemble cast
A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints
Shared with Robert Downey Jr., Shia LaBeouf, Rosario
Dawson, Chazz Palminteri and Dianne Wiest |
