Channing Tatum Stealing Stripper’s Story


Former stripping friends are badmouthing Channing Tatum on the week that his stripper comedy Magic Mike comes out. Before he was a superstar starring in G.I. Joe and 21 Jump Street, Tatum stripped in Tampa, Florida and learned the ropes from two strippers.

Now Channing Tatum’s former colleagues London Steele and Thomas “Awesome” Austin, are making claims that the actor stole their likeness to portray a stripper in his latest film Magic Mike. The two insist that not only did the actor rip off their “story” for the film, but also stole their “hot seat” move which is featured in Tatum’s film.

While promoting the film Tatum insists that the film is based on his days as a stripper when he used to work under the name Chan Crawford. Talking to MTV news, Channing explained the inception of the idea, “I did this for about eight months of my life, and I told [director Steven] Soderbergh about it, and he was just like, ‘Look, we have to make this into a movie,'”

However, stripper Austin was telling TMZ another story, telling the celebrity news vehicle that he made up the name Magic Mike for another stripper that worked with the boys at the strip joint. The move “the hot seat” is also a move Austin is claimed having shown Tatum without seeing any credit for it in the film.

To further prove his side of things, Austin told TMZ that Channing didn’t have a true experience of stripping to come up with all the events in the film, stating, “He only danced for four months. How many events could have happened to him?”

Who’s side are you on?

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