Channing Tatum’s Shocking Weight Loss Sparks Crew’s Deep Concern—What Really Happened Behind the Scenes?
So, Channing Tatum went and dropped five stone—yeah, that’s not a typo—to become this wiry little criminal in the upcoming flick Roofman. Now, before you start imagining him fainting on set or snatching steaks from the craft services table, hold up—Tatum’s waved off those “crew concern” rumors like yesterday’s news. The story? Oh, it’s wild: based on a true tale of Jeffrey Manchester, an army vet turned roof-crawling McDonald’s robber who literally lived inside a Toys ‘R’ Us for months, surviving on M&M’s and baby food. Talk about method acting! And while the director claimed the assistant director was concerned enough to order a steak for Channing, the man himself says it was just motherly love—not a health crisis. Makes you wonder, though—how many jobs demand you lose and gain an entire person’s weight on a whim? Welcome to Hollywood, where the transformation is just as real off-camera as on. LEARN MORE
Channing Tatum has cleared the air over crew members being ‘concerned’ by his drastic weight loss.
The actor dropped five stone for his upcoming role in Roofman, as he transformed into the ‘wiry’ criminal able to get through tight spaces.
Based on the true story, the film follows the story of Jeffrey Manchester, who earned the nickname from robbing McDonald’s restaurants by cutting holes in their roofs.
Having been caught in North Carolina in 1999, the army veteran was sentenced to 45 years but made a bid for escape under a truck (with the real driver playing himself in the film).
Making his way into town in 2004, he ended up setting up a ‘nest’ and living in a Toys ‘R’ Us store for months. There, Manchester reportedly ended up pretty much living off M&M’s and baby food for a while, ending up with quite a different figure to ‘bigger boned’ Tatum.
So, having just bulked up into a ‘dad bod’ for the filming of thriller-drama Josephine, the actor took it upon himself to transform into the escapee who was capable of living hidden in the toy shop.
But as his weight loss went on, director Derek Cianfrance previously said the film’s assistant director (AD) had become concerned about Tatum as she’d apparently asked to get ‘a steak’ for him.
However, the star now tells LADbible that this idea of crew on set being ‘concerned’ has been ‘blown out of proportion’.
“It was Mary Ellis, our first AD, she’s a mamma,” he says. “And she was just like ‘you did it, you don’t need to lose any more weight’.”
Plus, Tatum admits it wasn’t ‘even like he was trying’ to lose it.
In the film, Jeff pretty much lives off baby food and peanut M&M’s. (Paramount Pictures)
“And by the way, I was probably healthier than I’d been in a long time,” the actor adds. “But the only big swing of the whole thing was, I did a movie right before that where I was like a dad bod, that I was 240 [lbs].
“I put on weight really fast and really easy. And I do take it off pretty easy, it’s a good thing and a bad thing.”
With his physique put on full display during Roofman’s nude scene, when it comes to transforming physically, Tatum says, for him personally, it’s about ‘repetition and consistency’ as it just drops off. “Once you start a certain thing and as long as you don’t deviate from the plan, it’ll happen,” he adds.
“Ultimately, there was no real concern. It was just like, ‘All right, cool, we’re good. You’re exactly where you need to be’.”
Immersing himself into the role of Manchester, Cianfrance says Tatum was ‘born to play’ him and literally ‘wrote the script’ specifically for the actor.
Channing Tatum plays Jeffrey Manchester who lived inside a Toys ‘R’ Us for months after escaping prison. (Paramount Pictures)
With the director speaking to so many of the people connected in any way to the real story, the star also spoke with the convict at length.
“I talked to this guy [Manchester] for almost two and a half months every day,” Tatum reveals. “You talk about a lot of things, I wanted it to be a two-way street. I was like, ‘I don’t want to just grill you about your life’. And he asked me so many things about my life.”
The actor describes him as ‘an eternal optimist’ who is a ‘fascinating character’, pointing out how many of the workers involved in the McDonald’s robberies described him as ‘the most apologetic person’ and were ‘really generous’ to him.
Manchester is expected to be released from prison in 2036 with the film dividing many, as while it may bring up a lot of empathy, some say it’s painting him into a ‘hero’ while a few say he’s really a ‘sociopath’ criminal.
Roofman is in cinemas from 17 October.
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