Channing Tatum opened up about his “painful” split from ex-wife Jenna Dewan in a new Variety cover story published Tuesday.
The actor discussed his latest film Roofman and how playing a character who misses his daughter connected to his own experience co-parenting 12-year-old Everly with Dewan.
“I know for a fact I’m able to understand it,” Tatum said. “Jenna and I are good now, but it was a painful break to have that fall apart, especially being so young.”
“We tried to keep it together, tried for a year and a half, but we knew it was… Not to go into all that. It’s in the past. But it’s really tough not to have your daughter half the time. I wish I could just have her all the time.”
The former Step Up costars met on set in 2006 and got engaged two years later. They married in Malibu in 2009.
The couple separated in 2018. Dewan filed for divorce that October, and the proceedings weren’t finalized until September 2024.
Tatum told Variety that his life experiences fuel his acting. “I’ve lived six or seven different lives,” he said. “Life gives you fuel. If you’ve really been heartbroken, and really been in pain and felt real, true aloneness… I’ve experienced enough life that I have something to offer.”
The New Film
In Roofman, Tatum plays Jeffrey Manchester, a former Army Ranger who turns to robbing McDonald’s restaurants by cutting holes in their roofs. After escaping prison, he secretly lives inside a Toys ‘R’ Us for six months while planning his next move.
The character falls for Leigh, played by Kirsten Dunst, a divorced mom drawn to his charm. His double life begins to unravel as his past catches up with him.
Moving Forward
Dewan recently opened up about finding strength after finalizing their divorce. She’s engaged to Steve Kazee and they share two children: 5-year-old Callum and 14-month-old Rhiannon.
“This past year I learned that life has a way of bringing you exactly what you need to learn at exactly the right time,” Dewan wrote in an InStyle essay in January.
She didn’t mention Tatum by name but reflected on her growth in 2024. “Fresh starts, I’ve realized, don’t wait for calendars or big proclamations. They happen in the quiet choices: forgiving yourself, showing up again, trusting the process even when it feels hopeless.”
Roofman will have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival before hitting theaters October 10.
