Channing Tatum Will Play A Merman In Gender-Flipped “Splash” Remake

Moisture is the essence of wetness, and wetness is the essence of beauty.

That must be the thinking behind the hire of Channing Tatum for Disney’s Splash remake, which will see the Magic Mike star playing a merman opposite Workaholics’ Jillian Bell.

According to Deadline, Bell came up with the idea after working with Tatum on 22 Jump Street. And we already had so many reasons to be thankful for that film.

He also appeared on her show Idiotsitter, where this Labyrinth tribute happened:

For those who don’t remember – or, more likely, weren’t alive – during the era in which Tom Hanks was just a goofball comedy star and not an Oscar winning thespian, the original Splash saw him play a befuddled dude who fell in love with Daryl Hannah’s land-roaming mermaid.

(There was a straight-to-TV sequel called Splash, Too, and literally no one remembered it, including the cast, until I wrote the title down just then.)

Now, we’re in the very early days of this gender-flipped Splash reboot; a screenwriter – Marja-Lewis Ryan – has been tasked with penning the script, but Deadline’s report says the deal with Disney was only finalised on Friday night. Who knows if it'll ever end up happening?

Still, if Tom Hanks can wind up with a mermaid wife, we can surely will this fantasy of ours into existence.

Photo: Spike.