The Martian is one of Ridley Scott’s best films and when released received critical acclaim and was a staple of the awards season with nominations across the board. With that being said, it looks like another top tier actor was in consideration for the role.
Speaking to CinemaBlend, the author of the novel “The Martian,” Andy Weir, talked about the casting choice to go with Matt Damon in the lead role of Mark Watney, and how the studio (20th Century Fox) was thinking the film could be a good vehicle for Channing Tatum. Weir stated,
“Well, when Matt Damon threw his hat in the ring, we were like, ‘Oh hell yeah,’” explained Weir. “Bear in mind, in ‘The Martian’ I had no say whatsoever. My only job was to cash the check. The producers and Ridley were like, ‘Oh hell yeah. That works.’ But the studio was really pushing to have Channing Tatum play the lead. And I was like, ‘I don’t see that. He’s an absolutely gorgeous man, but I don’t see him being this really really smart guy.’”
“I’m sure the real Channing Tatum is plenty intelligent, but that’s not the kind of character he usually plays. He usually plays either a guy who’s gorgeous, or a guy who’s a badass, or both. But yeah, we got Matt, and Matt did such a fantastic job. He nailed it.”
It would have been quite the different film with Tatum leading the film.
