Channing Tatum’s Canceled Gambit Movie Had a '30s Screwball Romantic Comedy Vibe Set in the Superhero World

Lizzy Caplan reveals Channing Tatum's scrapped Gambit film was envisioned as a '30s screwball romantic comedy within the superhero genre.

In a recent interview with Business Insider, Caplan, who was slated to star opposite Tatum, described the abandoned project as possessing "a really cool idea." Tatum's long-fought quest to portray the beloved X-Men character seemingly stalled before his surprise cameo in Deadpool & Wolverine. The Gambit film, initially planned before the 2019 Disney-Fox merger, was ultimately canceled. Tatum himself has openly discussed the emotional toll this experience took on him, even describing it as "traumatizing."

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Caplan, reportedly attached to the project as the female lead since 2017, confirmed her involvement to Business Insider, stating that she'd signed on and even participated in pre-production meetings with Tatum. "We got down the road, we were gonna shoot it," she revealed. "I think there was a start date.”

Producer Simon Kinberg previously hinted at the film's comedic tone in a 2018 IGN interview, describing it as having "a romantic or sex comedy vibe," reflecting Gambit's character traits. "When you look at Gambit," Kinberg explained, "he’s a hustler and a womanizer and we just felt like there was an attitude, a swagger to him, that lent itself to romantic comedy."

Caplan corroborated this vision, stating, "They wanted to do, like, a '30s kind of screwball romantic comedy set in that world, which would have been really fun."

The future of Tatum's Gambit remains uncertain. While Marvel Studios has confirmed the X-Men's imminent arrival in the MCU, no official announcements regarding Gambit have been made. Last August, Ryan Reynolds' tweet of a high-quality Deadpool & Wolverine scene sparked considerable fan speculation.

Warning! Spoilers for Deadpool & Wolverine follow.