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Channing Tatum’s Awakward First Meet With Matt Damon
Channing Tatum is known for a host of comedy and action thriller movies such as 21 Jump Street, White House Down, and, most recently, Magic Mike’s Last Dance. The star has been a heartthrob to many Hollywood filmgoers for a long time. The star spoke with People magazine about his very awkward first encounter with another Hollywood legend, Matt Damon.
Tatum is currently promoting his brand new film, the final installment in the Magic Mike series, Magic Mike’s Last Dance. In the film, he stars opposite the supremely talented Salma Hayek and plays everyone’s favorite male stripper. While Tatum may be fearless on the pole, the actor admits that he could go into panic mode if he ever meets his heroes. He mentioned how he could “panic when I talk to people.”
Tatum Meets Damon
Tatum revealed that he was hanging out with Magic Mike director Steven Soderbergh who is also famous for films like Ocean’s 11 and Erin Brockovich. This was when Matt Damon decided to show up just to meet and relax with the director whom he knew very well. This is when Tatum came across one of his stars for the very first time, casually in a bar in Albuquerque. Things were looking great until Tatum decided to talk to Damon. Speaking with People magazine, he said:
“I’m such a fan and still am. I sat down next to him, and I was like, ‘Hey, man. Where are you from?’ — and I was like ‘I just asked Matt Damon where he’s from.’”
While some may look at this exchange and consider it absolutely hilarious, it was terrifying for Channing Tatum. The memory has been engraved in his head for a good long time. He mentioned how he “almost didn’t recover” after his initial fumble with the star. We get it, Channing. Anyone would feel the same way if put against Matt Damon in the first place.
But Damon was really cool about his own response. He did not let the actor feel awkward at all, as Tatum mentioned in his interview:
“He just took care of me in that moment and answered me,” he explained. “It was like nothing ever happened. He was just like, ‘Oh, I’m from Boston. Where are you from?’ and I was like, ‘I’m from Florida.’ In my head, I just kept screaming: ‘I’m sorry. I’m sorry!’”
Tatum mentions how he and Damon are on great terms now, and there is obviously no awkwardness regarding that first conversation. While being confident and amazing in front of the cameras may feel like a better fit for Tatum, it’s clear that meeting his favorite stars makes him understandably nervous. Remembering the incident, he said:
“Everyone on the planet knows where Matt Damon is from, and he obviously knows that I know where Matt Damon is from, and I almost didn’t recover. I don’t think I said anything for the next maybe two hours or so, and I still think about it today. Every once in a while, I’ll just have a cold sweat and feel like, I can’t believe….”
The incident took place when Soderbergh and Tatum were working on the 2011 film Haywire. Since then, Tatum and the director have worked on various other projects. While bumping into celebrities is a very common phenomenon in Hollywood, especially when you work in the film industry, it’s also very common to be stunned when you bump into your favorites. Tatum mentions how he “sort of keep[s] it together today,” but this incident will forever remain engraved in his memory.
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