How Channing Tatum Made $90 Million!

Probably never occurred to him that his early career would make him a millionaire.

The story behind Tatum’s rise to riches starts with one question: How does a script become a movie? It’s pretty simple. A writer has an idea and uses that to craft a compelling story via a script, which is then bought by a studio. Said studio will assumingly green-light the project, at which point they spend millions of dollars converting that script into a movie (or show). Once the project is released to the broader box-office market whatever profits are generated, after the theaters take their 40% cut, belong to the studio behind the project. Let’s say you’re a superstar screenwriter, you most likely only take home a couple of hundred grand from this process. Yes, even if your movie becomes the summer billion-dollar blockbuster. At this point, you might be thinking “well that doesn’t sound fair.”

Scripts, while artistic expressions, can only become successful ventures once someone has risked money to produce the actual movie. As with any business venture, whoever takes the risk receives the reward. Conversely, whoever takes the risk also has the most considerable financial burden should the project flop. In the scenario above, the screenwriter didn’t onboard any risk. Instead, they were paid a fair market rate for their services (i.e writing the script) and the studio took on said risk going forward. There is nothing wrong with this strategy per se. Screenwriters can often not afford the monetary risk whereas studios can absorb any losses across their film slate.       

But what happens in instances where the creator of the story also takes on the monetary risk of producing the project? Money, that’s what (often) happens. 

That’s why George Lucas is a billionaire, and why Mel Gibson earned an enormous fortune from “Passion of the Christ.” And how Todd Phillips earned enough from “The Hangover” franchise to purchase a Malibu mansion and a Beverly Hills mansion for a combined $40 million.

It’s also how Channing Tatum earned himself a massive windfall…

Moviestore/Shutterstock

Channing Tatum, an Alabama native, famously got his start on a much smaller stage than the big screen. After dropping out of college at Glenville State College in 1999, where he went on a football scholarship, Tatum began working as a stripper in Tampa, Florida. Showcasing his talents to the crowd with the stage name “Chan Crawford”. In 2000, Tatum decided to drive to Orlando for a backup dancer audition in the Ricky Martin music video “She Bangs”. He nailed the audition and got the part, netting himself a cool $400.

J. Vespa/WireImage

In the following years, he became an Abercrombie guy. You know the ones with fake-looking abs doused in what could easily be mistaken as a full can of axe body spray. Tatum appeared in commercials, walked runways, and continued working mostly as a model. Until 2006, when he landed a starring role opposite Amanda Bynes in the now cult classic ‘She’s The Man’. 

His hot streak would continue from there. The same year he landed ‘She’s The Man’, Tatum secured what many would consider his breakout role in ‘Step Up’. Oddly enough, his co-star would eventually become his ex-wife… anyways plowing ahead. Over the proceeding 4 years, Tatum continued making small waves with roles in movies such as ‘Step Up 2’, ‘Public Enemies’, ‘G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra’, and ‘Dear John’.

In 2010, when he signed onto a role in Steven Soderberg’s ‘Haywire’, he probably had no idea it would change his life. At a press junket for ‘Haywire’ in 2011, Tatum casually mentioned his desire to one day adapt his early stripping career into a movie. To his surprise, Soderberg was intrigued by the story and agreed to meet Tatum for lunch, which was apparently at a hot dog joint. The universe can be quite ironic sometimes. While eating their Oscar Meyer Wieners, Soderberg agreed to direct the movie, with one condition: The pair would co-finance the $7 million budget with their own money. Tatum was in.

Courtesy of Warner Brothers

On June 25th, 2012, ‘Magic Mike’ hit the big screens and would go on to earn $167 million at the Box Office. Plus, millions more from DVD sales and home rentals. After subtracting production costs, and the theater’s cut, Tatum and Soderberg walked away with $60 million…each.

                         Tatum’s Bank Account + $60 million

Courtesy of Warner Brothers 

On the heels of their success, did they decide to retire to an island somewhere? Nope, they pushed on with a sequel. ‘Magic Mike XXL’ was released on July 1st, 2015. Eventually snowballing into a $167 million box-office windfall. For their efforts, Tatum and Soderberg walked away with $30 million, each.

Tatum’s Bank Account + $30 million        

So, they’re done earning eye-watering levels of money, right? Mike has some more magic. The third, and reported final, ‘Magic Mike’ film has already grossed $53 million since its release on February 9th, 2023.

The Magic Mike empire doesn’t stop there. There is also a live act, which tours the globe and has a permanent residency at the Las Vegas Sahara casino. Combined, the live act has sold over $125 million in tickets. Now it’s unknown how much Tatum or Soderberg earn from the live shows, but I have to imagine it’s greater than $0.

For a man that started out as a college drop-out stripping in Tampa, I’d say Tatum has made quite the career for himself. Along with $90 million reasons to remember that oftentimes the best bet is yourself.

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