When Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan divorced, I thought he would be the one to move on quickly, get remarried in a hurry and likely have another kid with his second wife in short order. The opposite happened – Jenna moved on swiftly, developing a serious relationship with Steve Kazee and having a baby (son Callum) last year. Meanwhile, Channing has been dating – he had an on-and-off thing with Jessie J, and I would imagine he dates a lot, in general. But nothing very serious. That surprises me. Channing seems to be going all-in with his new single/divorced dad persona, and he’s written a children’s book (The One and Only Sparkella) in honor of his seven-year-old daughter Everly. He chatted with Parents Magazine about the book and single parenthood.
Life with Everly: “I paint my face, I wear tutus—rarely am I around the house without some sort of costume on.”
Whether Everly is Sparkella: “She is on many levels. Just like Sparkella, Evie loves to play tricks, wear crazy outfits, and be different from everyone. She’s bold, beautiful, and magical in every way. We played a lot in her room over quarantine, and it helped flesh out the story. Even when I was home alone, I would find an item of hers that gave me an idea. Once, I sat on the sofa, and her fairy wand stuck me in the butt.
His message to fathers of daughters: “I want dads not to be afraid to go into their daughter’s world and discover who they are. When I became a single father, I had a lot of fear about connecting to Everly in every way that a little girl might want. I didn’t wear nail polish or know how to braid hair. But now I do both. I jumped with both feet into this magical world, and I was rewarded with a kind of love that I don’t think I would have ever been able to have otherwise.
Whether he reads to Everly at bedtime: “We usually get to five books per night. I’ll read one, and then she’ll read one, and so forth. One of our long-standing favorites is the wordless picture book The Farmer and the Clown, by Marla Frazee. A baby clown falls off a circus train into a field and becomes unlikely friends with a farmer. You can make up whatever story you like; we sometimes get really wild with it! We’ve recently discovered Red: A Crayon’s Story, by Michael Hall. The red crayon is blue. No one knows what’s wrong with him and why he can’t just be red the whole time until someone just accepts him and loves him for all of his blueness.
I actually appreciate that Channing didn’t use the “girl dad” branding because that honestly annoys the hell out of me? Like, dudes want to “bro up” having daughters and turn it into a hyper-masculine thing. You don’t have to turn this sh-t into performative masculinity, just… be a good dad. Raise your children. And it sounds like Channing is doing that. I guess Jenna was right though – when they split, she seemed to suggest that Channing was barely ever around when Everly was younger, that he was always working and not there for their daughter. By divorcing him, Jenna forced him to prioritize Everly and learn how to be a parent. I love that it sounds like he and Everly chill out for hours, reading and making up stories and hanging out. He sounds like a good dad. Now.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, IG.
Jenna ran from that marriage. She does seem really into her new partner and in love with her girl and baby boy. I feel like Channing f’d up in that marriage and he seemed to mess with Jessie J too. It’s great that he’s focused on his daughter and truly co-parenting.
Yes, it’s great that he is focused on being a father, but it’s true that men get these accolades for being a father whereas women are parents every day without the fanfare!!
So Channing is…parenting.
It bothers me that men get like massive kudos for doing normal parenting things (reading and playing with your kids isn’t earth shattering) when women do the same damn thing everyday like it’s no big deal. Ugh.
I love guys that can unapologetically tap into any kind of feminine appreciation with a desire for understanding and growth. I REALLY love that, especially because I have boys. I have this huge roomy black t-shirt I wear around the house everyday. It has large print of a faceless Tom Holland dancing in drag with his umbrella. At any given moment on any day, one of us might bust out a move or two. 😁
That is pretty sweet, but I’m over the girl-dad and boy-mom labels.
Me too, so dumb. Humans love to categorize and label, though.
We do, and I get the intention behind it. Doesn’t stop me from finding it silly, though, lol.
Same. It’s just become another way for celebs to market themselves, and then it trickles down to the public. We really need to consider who is influencing us.
He sounds like a good dad. Incidentally, think he’s totally bi. Check out his comments about wanting to sleep with George Clooney. He also said Jude Law was hot, effectively, and maybe even Jamie Foxx too.
I have never commented before but I am a children`s literature nerd and those are FANTASTIC books he is reading with his child. Marla Freeze is amazing but rarely in the display case at book stores so the fact that he has found The Farmer and the Clown makes me think someone is putting some good thought into their book selection and whenever kids get exposed to beautiful quality books it makes me happy.