Channing Tatum is back. And he brought his “Dog.”
Tatum, whose last true starring role was in Steven Soderbergh’s “Logan Lucky” way back in 2017, is finally returning to the spotlight after a string of voice roles and some extended cameos (most recently in this past summer’s “Free Guy”). And what’s more – he’s directing!
“Dog,” coming this February from MGM, marks Tatum’s directorial debut. He’s splitting the duties with his longtime creative partner Reid Carolin, for a story co-written by Carolin and Brett Rodriguez. And as the first trailer (which you can watch above) shows, it’s going to be a wild ride.
Tatum plays Briggs, a down-on-his-luck Army Ranger who agrees to transport a fallen ranger’s service animal Lulu to the ranger’s funeral. Thus begins a kooky road trip wherein Briggs and Lulu learn from each other and grow in the process. Also there’s a bunch of classic dog comedy stuff like Lulu tearing up Briggs’ car and Briggs yelling at the dog for being a “demon.” This is right out of the “Turner and Hooch” playbook and you know what, it still works just as well today.
“Dog” will kick off something of a comeback year for Tatum. He’s also got Paramount’s “The Lost City,” a “Romancing the Stone”-style comedy adventure co-starring Sandra Bullock coming up this spring (it was briefly previewed at CinemaCon a couple of months ago), and has just signed on for a true-life drama about the Afghanistan evacuation set to co-star Tom Hardy. And honestly, it’s good to have him back. Now what do we have to do to get another “Magic Mike” or maybe “Logan Luckier”?
“Dog” hits theaters on February 18, 2022. Watch the trailer above.