Xavier Romualdo
Los Angeles (USA), Feb 18 (EFE).- Channing Tatum never finished adjusting to the frenetic pace of Hollywood and that is why he decided to disappear for four years, a long break that comes to an end this Friday with the premiere of “Dog”, a film that, in addition to starring, he has directed with his friend Reid Carolin.
“Taking a break is something healthy, especially if you work on something intensely and heavily for a long time,” acknowledges the actor in an interview with Efe in full promotion of his new film.
Tatum, who has recognized that he has moved away from the spotlight because he has accepted so many roles that he did not even know if he was doing a good job, has returned with his batteries charged.
In a few months he will return to life as the seductive stripper from “Magic Mike” (2012), the character that catapulted him to fame and who will star in the third film in the saga, following the plot of “Magic Mike XXL” (2015) which will start shooting this year.
In addition, the actor will act under the orders of Zöe Kravitz -his partner- in “Pussy Island” and next month he will premiere the adventure comedy “The Lost City”, in which he shares the screen with Sandra Bullock.
But before all that, Tatum presents his directorial debut this week, “Dog”, a “road movie” about a retired soldier who travels through the western United States accompanied by a dog, also retired from the army, to attend the funeral of a friend.
“Now that I’m older, I enjoy the experience of making movies more. Even when it’s difficult. I care much less about the final result,” says the 41-year-old actor.
Tatum and his friend Reid Carolin, screenwriter of “Magic Mike”, have shot this film inspired by the last trip that the actor took with his dog Lulu before he died of an incurable tumor.
“Coming back with this film, which is an investment made with my best friend, makes me feel especially good,” he clarifies.
Lulu is also the name of the dog that stars in the film, a Belgian shepherd who worked for the US army in Iraq and Afghanistan and who, back in the US, is asked to be present at the funeral of the soldier who trained him.
For his part, Tatum gives life to Jackson Briggs, a retired soldier with post-traumatic stress convinced that he will return to the ranks of the army if he fulfills the assignment of moving the dog from the north of the country, in the state of Washington, to the south, in Arizona.
During the route, the driver and the animal discover the traumas and consequences that the war has left on each one, while facing surreal situations in hotels, gas stations and marijuana plantations in California.
“I wouldn’t say it’s easy, but acting with dogs is pretty predictable, their motivation for the scene is the reward afterward,” Tatum details. “Until they get stuffed and don’t want to shoot anymore.”
Although to bring Lulu to life on screen, the team had three different dogs, each specialized in a type of acting.
“There wasn’t a single day, not a single scene where they gave up, and they’re in the whole movie,” he says.
“Dog”, which opens on Friday in the US and will reach other countries in the coming weeks, marks the beginning of a new stage in the career of an actor who has admitted that he even considered rejecting the third sequel to “Magic Mike” for the physical demands imposed by a character who has marked his career for a decade. EFE
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