Actor/producerChanning Tatumis finally starting to get one of his passion projects off the ground, literally and figuratively. We reported last week that directorDarren Aronofskyhas signed on to direct anUntitled Evel Knievel Biopicfor Sony Pictures, which has long hadChanning Tatumattached to star in and produce. While we still don’t know when production will begin, it seems the actor has already started his motorcycle training, posting a new video to his Instagram page earlier this week, where he is seen going over a few small jumps on a motorcycle.
It isn’t known which of these two riders in the video isChanning Tatum, or who the other individual is, although we assume that the other person is the actor’s trainer. The actor admitted that he has “a lot to learn,” but he also called the experience fun and “completely terrifying in a good way.” No story details have been revealed yet, but the original screenplay was written byChanning Tatum’s producing partnerReid Carolin, withScott Silver(The Fighter) providing a new rewrite.
The actor has been developing thisbiopicsince 2012, withPeter Bergcoming aboard to direct in April before he eventually dropped out. It seems unlikely thatChanning Tatumwill perform some ofEvel Knievel’s most death-defying stunts, but the fact that he’s training on a motorcycle likely means that he’ll be pulling off at least some of these stunts, although perhaps not the most dangerous ones. Then again, maybe he’ll take a page out ofTom Cruise’s book and do all of his own stunts, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Evel Knievelcame into prominence as a world-renowned daredevil in the 1960s and 1970s.Evel Knievelperformed more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps between 1965 and 1980, including a 1974 jump over the Snake River Canyon in the Skycycle X-2. He suffered more than 433 broken bones throughout his legendary career, earning him a Guinness world record as the survivor of most broken bones in a lifetime. Thedaredevilpassed away from a pulmonary disease in 2007, at the age of 69.
WithChanning Tatumtraining for this project, it may lead some to wonder about the status of hissuperhero movieadaptationGambit. 20th Century Fox has already set an August 11, 2025 release date, but the actor is currently the only actor confirmed, and the project recently lostRupert Wyattas the director. The filmmaker reportedly left after theproductionwas pushed, so perhaps the studio may be delaying the movie. While we wait to find out more abutGambit, check outChanning Tatum’s motorcycle skills below.
