Channing Tatum Set To Return To Space For ‘The Forever War’

Channing Tatum channing-tatum_Getty-cropped
Getty Image

i

Channing Tatum isn’t going to let Jupiter Ascending‘s box office receipts deter him from sci-fi movies, whether they be clean, rad, and powerful Men in Black crossover movies or award-winning Vietnam War parables set in space. Speaking of the latter, Warner Bros. and Sony just had a bidding war over Joe Haldeman’s 1974 novel The Forever War, with Channing Tatum already attached to star.

Warner Bros. outbid Sony for the rights, reports Deadline, with a script being adapted from the novel by Jon Spaihts (Prometheus, Doctor Strange, Passengers). I’ll honestly be surprised if this gets made, considering Ridley Scott — who is no longer attached to the project — had been trying to get it made for seven years. The rumor was the rights holder — Richard Edlund, visual effects artist on the original Star Wars trilogy — didn’t approve of any of the many, many drafts of the script. Perhaps the new screenwriter and studio can change his mind. Or the prospect of seeing Channing Tatum as a space soldier.

As previously mentioned, the book is influenced by Joe Haldeman’s own experience in the Vietnam War. In the book, a guy is drafted into a war against aliens, but doesn’t really know why they’re fighting or when it will end (sounds familiar). Because of the speed at which he’s traveling during his tour of duty, centuries pass on Earth and he returns home to a completely unfamiliar and alienating society (also sounds familiar).

We just have to wonder if all of the social commentary from the book will make it into the script, like the part where future governments encourage homosexuality as a type of birth control. Channing could probably do a second tour of duty working for the propaganda department on that one…

Yes, this entire post was an excuse to use those GIFs. You are welcome.

(Via Deadline)

×