Soon enough it seems, Channing Tatum might be able to rest more easily knowing that at long last he has a director signed on to direct ‘Gambit,’ which was almost the case when they hired Rupert Wyatt. Wyatt signed on to helm the mutant movie earlier this year, and then left mid-September citing scheduling conflicts with another unnamed project. Insiders say he actually left due to creative differences, and a fear of making a subpar movie if his demands were not met. Fortunately for all, it seems a deal is nearing completion that would place Doug Liman (‘Edge of Tomorrow,’ ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith,’ ‘The Bourne Identity’) in the director’s chair, a surprising move that most did not see coming. Of course, the decision is also worrisome for fans of ‘Gambit,’ for there have long been rumors of on-set drama with Liman, especially while he was shooting ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ and ‘The Bourne Identity,’ the latter of which was apparently saved entirely in post, which explains why Liman was not asked to come back and direct the ‘Bourne’ sequels.

As a fan of Tatum and of ‘Gambit,’ everything happening here is worrisome as well, as these movies usually require a firm hand by a director who has time to develop concept ideas, scripts, and his cast and crew. With Liman coming in so late in the game (and with the movie gearing up for an October 7th, 2016 release), there is not much time for him to get through all these necessities, which means he might just be picking up where Wyatt left off, meaning Liman might not get his full creative say on a lot of decisions. Last time we had a situation like this is when Bryan Singer left the ‘X-Men’ franchise to direct ‘Superman Returns’ after doing a script a lot of the pre-production work for ‘X-Men 3,’ which was then finished by Brett Ratner. No one liked ‘X-Men: The Last Stand,’ as it definitely felt like Ratner trying to do a Singer movie, which left everything feeling very off. (of course karma came back for Singer for abandoning his franchise with the disaster that was ‘Superman Returns’).

What are your thoughts on Doug Liman stepping in to take the reigns of ‘Gambit?’ Do you think he still has time to make an exemplary movie? Or is this just the studio trying to put something out there since the project has been plagued with issues? Share your opinions below!

Source: The Hollywood Reporter