Thandiwe Newton has left Magic Mike's Last Dance for personal reasons and now Salma Hayek will take her place in the Channing Tatum-led film. The franchise has been one that has shocked audiences from its inception with its storyline, and connection to Tatum's real-life story. The third film is a return for both director Steven Soderbergh and writer Reid Carolin. Carolin wrote the screenplays for Magic Mike and Magic Mike XXL but Soderbergh only directed Magic Mike.
“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,” a spokesperson for the studio told Variety. Hayek is stepping into the role after diving into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2021 with her role as Ajak in Chloé Zhao's Eternals for Marvel Studios. But having her in something like Magic Mike's Last Dance is very aligned with the comedic work Hayek has done in the past.
It would have been wonderful to see Newton in something like this with her long career spanning things like Westworld, Crash, and Solo: A Star Wars Story but it is understandable to step away to take time for yourself. Hayek is going to be phenomenal in the role, so the project is left in good hands!
In a cover story for Variety from Februaryfrom February, Tatum and Carolin spoke a bit about the character that Hayek is now playing, stating: “It’s really about a woman stuck at a horrible strip show like a Chippendales and then realizing, ‘What the hell am I doing here?’” Carolin said at the time. “And then Magic Mike comes down from the ceiling. She gets to go down the rabbit hole and asks: What do I really want?”
Tatum went on to say that the character is “really strong, almost stronger than Mike … we’ve never done a traditional love story, and this isn’t a traditional love story.” It will be interesting to see how the switch in casting affects things as filming was already underway. Whether the movie gets delayed is also something that has yet to be seen. But it will be fun to see Hayek and Tatum playing off each other and how their love story, however untraditional it is according to Tatum, unfolds in the franchise.
The exciting new installment for the Magic Mike franchise is one that fans have been waiting for, and it'll be interesting to see what a return of Soderbergh does for the project.
There is currently no release date for Magic Mike's Last Dance.