Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox included their Marvel franchises. That means the X-Men and the Fantastic Four will eventually join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, the acquisition wasn't without complications. Fox had multiple X-Men spin-offs in development the Disney acquisition jeopardized, including solo movies for Multiple Man and Kitty Pryde. Still, the longest gestating project was a Gambit film starring Channing Tatum, which suffered adversity long before Disney entered the picture.
Fox's Gambit: The Rise and Fall of Channing Tatum's Solo X-Men Movie
Tatum was first attached to Gambit in 2014. Although he was part of a group photo featuring actors from X-Men films Deadpool and X-Men: Apocalypse, Gambit was touted as a standalone movie that subverted origin story tropes. The Mister Sinister tease in X-Men: Apocalypse's post-credits scene was intended as a lead-in for his appearance in Gambit, but Tatum's version of the character would be introduced as a solo act.
One of Gambit's defining features in the early days of production was Tatum's enthusiasm for the role. After almost being cast as the character in X-Men: The Last Stand and Wolverine: Origins, Tatum was chomping at the bit to play Gambit. He also cited his New Orleans roots as a reason he wanted to play the Cajun X-Man. His passion for the character was reminiscent of Ryan Reynolds' desire to play Deadpool.
Unfortunately, one of the film's other defining features was how many directors it went through. Gambit cycled through directors Rupert Wyatt, Doug Liman and Gore Verbinski during its production years. While Wyatt and Verbinski publicly cited scheduling conflicts as their reasons for dropping out, Liman admitted that he wasn't "feeling" the script. Wyatt later revealed that his version of the movie's budget was slashed following the failure of Fantastic Four.
The director's chair hot seat and script revisions continually pushed production back. As time went on, Gambit's scope shifted. In the early days of production, it was described as a heist movie set in the X-Men universe. The success of Logan and Deadpool meant that Fox wanted Gambit to find its own niche based on the character's personality. By 2018, producer Simon Kinberg announced that it would be more of a romantic comedy revolving around the relationship between Gambit and his first wife from the comics, Belladonna.
What is the Development Status of the Gambit Movie?
Gambit was one of the X-Men spin-offs -- as well as a Doctor Doom solo movie -- left in limbo following Disney's Fox acquisition. There was still news about Gambit as late as 2019. However, the release date had been pushed all the way back to March 13, 2020. Kinberg was still talking about it in interviews, and Tatum was even rumored to be interested in directing.
Shortly after the acquisition was finalized, Kinberg said Gambit was one of the movies whose future was being evaluated by its new owner, giving fans some hope that it might see the light of day. Weeks later, Disney removed the last of the X-Men movies in development from its schedule, canceling Gambit alongside three mystery films. That left Dark Phoenix and The New Mutants as the final X-Men movies produced on Fox's watch.
Will Gambit Appear in Marvel's MCU Phase 5?
Gambit being revived for Phase 5 of the MCU sounds like an odd fit at first blush. While Kevin Feige hinted that mutants will be introduced to the MCU in Phase 5 at Comic-Con 2019, Gambit seems like an odd vehicle to do it. But there are some reasons why it might work.
Gambit is a popular character who was part of the X-Men at the peak of their popularity in the 1990s. He was a member of the iconic Blue Team in the comics and a major cast member of the animated series. His original appearances in the comics gave him a mysterious past and anti-hero tendencies. That makes him a good substitute for Wolverine as a lead character, especially since he comes without the baggage of an actor having to follow Hugh Jackman's performance.
Following The Avengers' model, Gambit could introduce the X-Men's corner of the MCU before the team appears. Tatum's passion for the character, and the amount of work he put into trying to get a solo Gambit project off the ground, are good reasons to retain him in the role. If there's one person in Hollywood who understands Gambit, it's him.