NEWS FLASH: New Channing Tatum Interview from New York Post and Hollywood.com

I wanted to let everyone know that the New York Post and Hollywood.com just released a new article on Channing Tatum and his upcoming action/drama 'Fighting'.

Some of the Hollywood.com questions and Chan's answers in the article may look a little familiar if you read my recent post on his ComingSoon.net interview, but the new interview is still definitely worth the read, since we learn a little more about Channing and what it's like to work on a Dito Montiel film again.

One of the things I find interesting in the article is that Hollywood.com refers to Channing's character's name as 'Shawn Macarthur', but IMDB says it's 'Sean Arthur' and Chan's trailer door on set had the name 'Shawn' on it. I'm not 100% certain what his character's name is at this point, so I guess we'll all have to see the movie (which is set for a 2008 release) to know for sure.

Regardless of what Chan's character's name ends up being, just make sure to check out the new interview below....

Round Two: Channing Tatum in the Ring Again with 'Fighting' Director

Paris Hampton
Special to Hollywood.com

Channing Tatum's wholesome-meets-edgy good looks and smooth moves made him the object of many a teen girl's affection in his role in Step Up. but it was his unflinching performance in Dito Montiel's Sundance-winning directorial debut A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints that made other thespians stand up and take notice.

Now starring in Fighting, Channing challenges himself in a drama that is also a test of physical endurance.

According to Fighting producer Kevin Misher, Channing Tatum is a natural at playing the role of 'Shawn Macarthur.' Channing's character is a naïve outsider who comes to the 'big city' and struggles to survive, hustling counterfeit goods on the street. When he meets Harvey Boarden (Terrence Howard) and is introduced into the world of high stakes street fighting, he is plunged into an underground community, encompassing every fighting discipline--where anything goes.

Hollywood.com caught up with Channing on the set of Fighting to hear more about his exciting and ongoing collaboration with Dito Montiel:

Hollywood.com: This is 'round two' for you and Dito. How does that feel?

Channing Tatum: I literally have to pinch myself every day. The first experience with him was so easy and painless--it was a labor of love. It was his life's story and it had so much heart in it. This film, we get to create from scratch. We've taken a little from his past and my past.

HW: Are you taking a beating?

CT: I'm not really all that tough. And I'm playing the character like he's a nice kid from the South, who comes up to New York and needs to make some money. And my character is desperate. From there, it spirals and goes into a crazy, dark world of fighting. It's pretty brutal. I got hit in the nose a few times--it was broken and bleeding. It was good though. At the end of the day, you feel like you've been in a fight!

HW: Did you train for this?

CT: I did. I'm not a tough guy, by any means. I went to private school--Catholic school. I trained for a month on my own at Legends Gym in L.A. I checked out fighters on YouTube. With a real fighter, there's no hesitation and I didn't want to be timid. My character is a high school wrestler, so he knows how to handle himself in a physical altercation. He has a talent for losing it. But I'm actually not big on violence--'I'm a Lover…'

HW: Do you and Dito have shorthand?

CT: Oh yeah. I get the way Dito writes. I think he likes the characters to talk about nothing, but still have the feeling of a scene underneath it. And that is something that a lot of directors and actors forget: you don't have to spell it out. If a guy and a girl are sitting at a restaurant, he'll [Dito will] say, "We can tell you like each other by you two sitting there. If you wanna fall in love, go the opposite way." It's crazy, but it somehow translates.

HW: What's it like working with Terrence?

CT: Terrence is the most genuinely gifted crazy man I've ever met in my life. He's crazy, but in the most beautiful way possible. He's such an empathetic person. He really is a street corner poet; he's an artist from the ground up--every piece of him!

HW: Your career is really taking off. Are you ready to make the jump to the A-list?

CT: I don't know, man. I really can't even think that way. It's too weird and big to think about. [Laughs] I just want to 'get' this scene we're working on right.

HW: Who else would you like to work with?

CT: People like Dito! I'm also going to be working with Oliver Stone. I'm going to do a Vietnam movie with him. It's his last movie about Vietnam--or so he says! I want to work with great filmmakers and great actors and great writers.

HW: Chazz Palminteri gave you advice on A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints about acting...

CT: He told me to keep a good head on my shoulders; he taught me more about acting than I've ever learned in a class. I was really worried about people hating my character in Saints--I was terrified. But Chazz said, "People don't have to like your character, they just have to understand him." I don't know if people will like my character in this movie--he's kinda weird. He's an underdog. But I understand him.

Love Channing Tatum?
Stay in the Know...Subscribe to Channing Tatum Unwrapped: Email | RSS