Channing Tatum for 'The Twilight Saga: Eclipse'?

April 28, 2:22 AMTwilight ExaminerAmanda Bell

Previous Next

33 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Twilight Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Twilight and The Twilight Saga: New Moon screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg recently gave E! an interview that might make some Twilight fans a little edgy.

She has suggested to them, in short, that she thinks Channing Tatum, star of Step Up and Stop-Loss and upcoming G.I. Joe: The Rise Of The Cobra, Dear John, and Public Enemies, would be a perfect Riley for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (to be directed by David Slade).

Rosenberg, who is currently penning the third installment of the book-to-film translation of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, said “There’s a very big battle at the end with Riley, and I think Channing would do that so well.” “And there are some complexities to that character," she adds. "He really is tragic. He’s a puppet for Victoria . . . So he has to break your heart a little bit at the end when he realizes that she doesn’t want him. Channing could do that beautifully.”

Tatum, who is hailed for his bad-boy persona in his films, has a strong build and a tough exterior, but he is also that sullen soul-searching bit down to a tee.

In Eclipse, Riley is described to be muscular, blonde, and Bella's age. He is also supposed to be quite manipulable, as Rosenberg indicates, to the will of Victoria (played by Rachelle Lefevre).

Given the description, it appears that Tatum would fit the physical bill alright. He is, after all, the strong silent type that a girl could fall in love with, and, if he's anything like the characters he has portrayed in such films as Step Up, there's more to him than just brawn.

Yet, there is some cause for concern with Tatum also. Allowing that he is suitable for the part, one might do well to refer to his up-coming film schedule. It is rather intense. With four films in pre-production (The Stanford Prison Experiment, The Eagle of the Ninth, The Brotherhood of Rose, and Pinkville), Tatum's many obligations might be something to consider.

That's not to say he still couldn't pull it off. Riley is a fairly small (though important) role, and others who have been pitted in similar spots for the third to the Twilight sequel are in for the same. Take Dakota Fanning, for instance. Her character, Jane, makes an all-too-important cameo in the very same sequences of Eclipse, and her schedule is always busy (including, contemporaneously, her plan to work with Kristen Stewart in The Runaways). Yet, this is no obstacle to her involvement with the project, and she will continue her part as Jane throughout the series, we presume.

So, what do you think? Would you like to see Channing Tatum become Riley in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse? Comment below and let us know!

Join Twilight Examiner on Facebook and Twitter!