Why, Fox? Why?

Why do you threaten us with a Channing Tatum Gambit movie? This joke has gone on long enough. Trolling is over. Who’s REALLY going to play Gambit. Wait...there really IS going to be a Gambit movie starring Channing Tatum? It’s hard to say it, but that sounds worse than the upcoming Venom movie or even the second attempt at bringing the Dark Phoenix Saga to the screen.

Read this next part in your best Samuel L. Jackson voice: “Why would you put Channing Tatum in a movie where he has to do a cajun accent?” Insert colorful Samuel L. Jackson language where necessary.

I’m not arguing that Tatum doesn’t have his fans. The guy is in his share of hit movies and seems to draw a crowd. But this is a different character with an established fan base, and Tatum’s usual I’m-so-cool-but-yet-I’m-kind-of-a-dork comedy routine won’t play well with Gambit.

Apparently, I’m not the only one thinking a Tatum-led Gambit movie is a horrible idea. Over the past three months, mid-grade copies of “Uncanny X-Men” #266 have been dropping in sales. A graded 7.0 has dropped by nearly 20%. Typically Gambit is a popular character and his first appearance generally sells. Why the drop lately? My speculation is that it is due to the talk of the solo movie.

In my last post, I talked about how “X-Men: Apocalypse” damaged sales of the villain’s first appearances. I’ve also mentioned more than once that the Venom movie, while it’s boosting sales specifically of “Amazing Spider-Man” #361 now, featuring a bad portrayal of Carnage will ultimately hurt the value of that comic. Unfortunately, the name Channing Tatum isn’t giving Uncanny 266 a quick boost in sales; it’s doing the opposite. If Fox keeps moving forward with this idea, it could crush the value of those Gambit first appearances.

There is a silver lining here, so don’t fret too much...unless you’re a hardcore Gambit fan. In that case, go ahead and fret.

While collectors are backing off Uncanny 266, it wouldn’t be a bad move to pick up a copy or two from a seller who is hitting the proverbial panic button. It is most definitely a buyer’s market when it comes to Gambit keys, and at this point, it is a bit of a gamble. (A Gambit gamble, you might say. I’ll give you a minute to get yourself together from laughing at that one. I’ll be right here.) If this movie ever comes to fruition, it’s going to be bad, trust me, and sales won’t pick up...unless Fox releases a good trailer.

Never underestimate the power of a well-planned movie trailer. “Green Lantern” looked like it would be a good movie based on the first couple of trailers. But we all know how that one turned out. That being said, if Fox puts out a good trailer that surprises people, sales will spike quickly. That’s when, if you’ve already stocked up on your extra copies of Uncanny 266, you can make a profit. My final advice - use the buyer’s market to your advantage. Pick up those copies on the cheap, maybe even get them graded, then play the waiting game. However, in the words of Homer Simpson, “The waiting game sucks. Let’s play Hungry, Hungry Hippos.”