Channing Tatum has played a wide assortment of characters over the course of his career, from a troubled dancer to a cajun mutant with a thick accent. In his 2025 movie release, Roofman, Tatum plays Jeffrey Manchester, a former non-commissioned officer for the Army reserve who turns to a life of crime. During filming, Tatum had the opportunity to get to know the real Manchester and pick his brain. The actor discussed their relationship while speaking with CinemaBlend and explained how he empathizes with Jeff.
Whenever actors play real people, it’s natural for them to feel a sense of responsibility to tell a person’s story to the best of their ability. Channing Tatum seemed to take his role as Jeff Manchester very seriously, based on what he shared when he and co-star Kirsten Dunst spoke with CinemaBlend. When asked about his philosophy on how close an actor should get to a subject they’re playing, Tatum opened up about getting very anxious when playing his roles:
Yeah, it’s very stressful for me. I don’t know, I think I put myself under a lot of stress to even do a movie, because I kind of want to scare myself into, like, doing really – the best job I can, I guess. And, you know, talking to Jeff, you start to create a connection with somebody, and you want to be able to do them justice on some level.
even going “butt naked” for a scene (and there’s a wild story about how it was shot). Needless to say, we’re talking about an actor who’s dedicated to their craft.
Speaking of dedicated performers, Kirsten Dunst also has experience playing real people, including actress Marion Davies and French queen Marie Antoinette. In Roofman, Dunst plays a variation of Leigh Wainscott – a woman who became romantically involved with Manchester. Like her co-star, Dunst also took her responsibility to Wainscott very seriously:
I think there’s more stress when it’s a person that everybody knows, you know? But I think for me, finding – through Derek – out about Lee, and she came to set and stuff. The real thing I wanted to show was her beautiful compassion to the situation with Jeff and how she doesn’t hold any resentment, and she truly leads her life, like, with a lot of grace. So I wanted [to show] that aspect of her.
Such thoughtfulness from both Dunst and Channing Tatum is commendable, and is sure to shine through in their performances. Both stars are now linked to their film’s subjects due to their portrayals and, if Tatum’s comments are anything to go on, he’s happy to be connected to Jeff Manchester in that way. Check out Tatum’s performance as well as Dunst’s in Roofman, which is now playing in theaters.