Inside Thandiwe Newton And Channing Tatum's Rumored Feud About The Oscars Slap
The fallout from Will Smith's Oscars slap just keeps going. Originally, Page Six reported that Thandiwe Newton was fired from the Channing Tatum vehicle "Magic Mike's Last Dance" due to the stars' vehemently differing opinions on the incident that saw Chris Rock being assaulted on live TV. What's more, a source told The U.K. Sun that the alleged fight escalated to an "astonishing" degree and culminated with Tatum, who is currently dating Zoe Kravitz after her divorce, leaving the London set of the film because he was so upset.
But the Daily Mail then reported that claims Newton was let go from the film after fighting with Tatum over Smith's assault are incorrect. Instead, according to the outlet, the actress has said a personal issue is behind her decision to quit. In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros. said, "Thandiwe Newton has made the difficult decision to step away from the production of Warner Bros. Pictures' 'Magic Mike's Last Dance' to deal with family matters."
The outlet further reported that Salma Hayek would be stepping into her role, a change which is already reflected on IMDb.
Channing Tatum is yet to address the rumors about a fight with Thandiwe Newton
Indeed, Thandiwe Newton has now denied the rumors of a fight, but who to believe? The U.K. Sun went so far in its reporting as to claim the "Crash" actress plans to sue Warner Bros. over Channing Tatum's "unimaginably vicious" behavior on the set of "Magic Mike's Last Dance," all stemming from a fight over Will Smith's Oscars slap.
A crew member told The U.K. Sun that given that Tatum is also a producer on the film, it was always Newton who would have to go. The source further claimed to have witnessed the confrontation between the two Hollywood stars and heard the former stripper say, "I am not working with her anymore."
The outlet stated crew members are also reportedly upset because having to replace Newton with Salma Hayek caused a delay of 11 days in the production.
But Newton's spokesperson told the Daily Mail about rumored tensions on set, "This report is completely inaccurate." For his part, Tatum previously told Variety about the character that will now be played by Hayek, she's "really strong, almost stronger than Mike ... we've never done a traditional love story, and this isn't a traditional love story."
At time of writing, he had not said anything specifically about Newton leaving or Hayek replacing her, nor had he confirmed or denied reports of an altercation on set (via Page Six).