"G.I. Joe: Retaliation" … now with swivel-arm battle grip … and more Channing Tatum!
As you've probably suspected, there are other reasons as to why Paramount decided to push the "G.I. Joe" sequel to 2013 other than "we want to make it 3-D." One of those reasons is that the studio has finally realized that Channing Tatum is kind of a movie star, according to Deadline.
And you don't kill off movie stars in the first reel. As everyone kind of guessed, Channing's character, Duke, is (was) one of the many Joe casualties of a Cobra attack in the first act of the sequel that turns the small group of ragtag survivors into off-the-grid rogue warriors. Paramount has realized that maybe they were a little hasty in showing Tatum the door so quickly and are now planning reshoots that will flesh out Duke's relationship with his team member, Roadblock (Dwayne Johnson).
So is this why the new poster on display at the film's IMDB page is rather Tatum-centric?
Paramount shocked just about everyone earlier this month when it pulled "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" from its release date of June 29, 2012 and pushed it to March 29, 2013, especially after it spent a ton of money on a Super Bowl spot earlier this year and tons of toys and other "Joe" merchandise were just about set to hit stores. The official reason for the change is that the studio wants to convert the film to 3-D, which apparently means more dollars overseas. Whatever.
Anyway, June 29 isn't completely devoid of Channing Tatum, as Steven Soderbergh's "Magic Mike" is still set to open on the day it said it would. Hey, a shirtless Channing Tatum might ultimately trump a uniformed Tatum, no matter the circumstances.
