Channing Tatum says fans shouldn’t hold their breath for 23 Jump Street.
During an interview with Variety, Tatum revealed the long-awaited third installment of the hit buddy-cop comedy is stalled and may never happen. Despite years of rumors and what he calls “the best script I’ve ever read for me and Jonah [Hill],” the actor revealed that bloated producer fees have repeatedly derailed the sequel.
“I get asked more about Jump Street 3 than any other movie on the face of the planet that I’ve ever done,” said Tatum. “I don’t think it’ll ever happen. The problem is the overhead. It would cost as much as the actual budget of the film — if not more — because of all the producers involved. It’s just too top-heavy. It falls over every time.”
According to Tatum, both he and co-star Jonah Hill, along with returning directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, have agreed to lower their producer fees to get the project moving significantly. But producer Neal H. Moritz is the one roadblock that remains.
“Neal’s price for a producer fee is huge,” Tatum said. “And to be honest, that’s what’s killing it.”
The first film, released in 2012, was a breakout hit that earned $201 million worldwide, while 2014’s 22 Jump Street pulled in a massive $331 million. A number of sequel ideas have been floated over the years, including a wild crossover with Men in Black that was eventually shelved.
The Jump Street film franchise is a modern comedy reboot of the 1987 Fox television series 21 Jump Street, which starred a young Johnny Depp as an undercover cop posing as a high school student to bust youth crime. The show became a cultural phenomenon, launching Depp’s career and popularizing the concept of undercover police infiltrating schools.