There’s no doubt in my mind that Steven Soderbergh will get to direct The Man from U.N.C.L.E. before he takes his oft-discussed hiatus, but this doesn’t change the fact that it’s been too bumpy a road for the filmmaker to endure. It really says something when Bradley Cooper making an exit was just the latest in a long line of unfortunate developments.

But, Deadline is the bearer of potentially good news: They’re reporting that the director wants his Haywire and Magic Mike star, Channing Tatum, to take the lead role of spy Napoleon Solo. The relationship that the two have formed over a couple of features in the past few years is certainly a boon to the rumor’s credibility, and the fact that stunt work “shouldn’t be a problem” — as it was for George Clooney — is another bonus. If there is one problem, it’s a wide public perception of his acting skills — or, as would be argued, lack thereof.

There are many people who claim that Tatum is a complete void of an actor, someone who couldn’t emote if he tried or was forced to. I think that’s a little unfair — there’s something entertaining about him when onscreen, and he probably just hasn’t received the right role quite yet. As I’ve said before, the fact that people keep casting him probably means that there’s something going on with the guy that works; perhaps it just doesn’t prove true when cameras are rolling, for one reason or another. Yet, if you had to pick anyone that could bring out the true actor in him, Steven Soderbergh is not low on the list of strong choices.

How do you feel about Tatum leading U.N.C.L.E.?