Actor Channing Tatum really stepped up his dad game, jumping in headfirst to raise his daughter Everly solo after he and his ex-wife Jenna Dewan. Talking with Parents magazine in April 2021, he expressed that he wanted dads to be fearless in entering their little girl’s world and discovering who they are.
He said, “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.”
Meeting Everly
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Channing Tatum and ex-wife Jenna Dewan first met on the set of the 2006 film “Step Up,” where they played dance partners turned lovers Tyler and Nora. Three years later, they tied the knot, and after another three, they announced they were pregnant with their first child.
Everly Elizabeth Maiselle Tatum arrived in May 2013, a month earlier than expected. By June, the former couple announced the news with an exclusive source revealing how Tatum would be the ‘most adorable hands-on daddy ever.’ And he surely lived up to the reputation.
Despite his busy schedule, he made sure that he always had time for his little girl and his wife. During the promotion for his film White House Down, the actor confessed that it was very hard to be away from Everly for 12 to 15 hours a day and then come back and feel how much she had already changed. Of course, nothing was more important to him than being with family.
He also shared that it was a pretty terrifying feeling for him to be a new dad. In his film, he protected the president, so the stakes were high, but as a father, there was nothing more important – or scarier – than protecting a daughter.
Going Solo
After almost ten years of marriage, Tatum and Dewan broke the news that they had called it quits. Dewan filed for divorce in October 2018, and according to Us Weekly, a judge signed off on the proceedings in February 2020. Following that, Dewan welcomed her son Callum with fiancé Steve Kazee.
On the other hand, Everly was kept by his dad. However, the former couple had made it clear through a statement they shared via Instagram that they were still a family. That they will always be loving, dedicated parents to their daughter.
Single Dad Era
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Raising Everly proved to be a big adjustment and challenge to the actor. For one, Tatum knew that he liked to act and play make-believe and other magical things, but he was unsure if he could meet his daughter at her level as a single dad.
He expressed his fear to V Man, saying, “I was doubly afraid. Was I going to be able to do any of the stuff that a mother should do? That a mother, as a woman, can relate to her as?”
That is why Tatum vowed to do whatever she wanted to do, no matter how silly it was. Even with such a chaotic work schedule, he always made it work.
Everly has grown not only as her father’s daughter but also as one of his, what Tatum would say, toughest critics. She is always straightforward with her opinions about his movies, and when she doesn’t like them, she makes sure he knows by refusing to call them a real movie.
Tatum shared that whenever his movie was on, he would catch her attention and say, “Look! Daddy’s on the screen.” Then she would say, “Ugh, Dad. Can we watch a real movie or something?”
However, it looked like she was biased toward her dad’s animated movie “Smallfoot.” According to the actor, he wondered if she would like it because Everly only liked movies with female heroes, fairies, and princesses.
There was one character, though, that kind of checked her boxes, so he hoped that it would come through for him. Fortunately, it did!
Everly definitely loved Meechee, the daughter of the Stonekeeper and secret leader of the Smallfoot Evidentiary Society (S.E.S.), played by Zendaya!
As for Magic Mike, which was inspired by his career as a stripper, he said that they would have that conversation when she’s old enough to watch the film. He also revealed that there wouldn’t be a version of him not having the conversation, saying, “Dad didn’t just do them in the movies. I was an actual stripper.” He definitely wouldn’t lie to her about it.
Aside from reviewing movies together, they also love to bond through activities. In March 2020, he shared a clip of them on his Instagram story enjoying the outdoors.
In his caption, he wrote, “In this time of fear we choose [to] stay adventurous and full of love and life. Things are so scary. So for us little challenges anywhere anyhow are tiny milestones to keep our mind and heart present and connected.”
In the video, Everly could be heard quipping at her dad that they would die, followed by a heartwarming message that she wanted to let him know she had always loved him if she died. The kid definitely got some sense of humor.
That said, it wasn’t until June 2021 that Tatum revealed his daughter’s face. Alongside it was a very sweet tribute, saying that she is his everything – the world and his heart. He also added a cute backstory about the photo.
According to the actor, Everly was then looking at the full moon and telling him the prophecy of the full moon mermaid. Then they ran into the water, calling out for the mermaid while playing with glow sticks. After that, Everly said she touched a bald mermaid and saw a tail.
According to the actor, his daughter had always been creative. Personally, he was not, and the most creative venture he had gone through was always with her. “My experience was to go into her world and be there with her. If she likes dragons, I’ll go be a dragon. If she likes witches, I’ll become a warlock.”
Learning Curve
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Seeing Everly experience a lot of things for the first time showed Tatum how different it was for him. It also made him realize something: “Learning to be a parent is probably messier than being a kid.” But, of course, it was all worthwhile.
Chatting with Vanity Fair, Channing Tatum said that his split with Dewan made him do the work. He said he didn’t think he would ever try to figure out what was next if it hadn’t happened.
Channing Tatum confessed that it had just started with his daughter Everly. He just dropped everything and focused on her. It was the best thing that he had ever done in his life. He said, “Because in the alone time that I have with just me and her, we’ve become best friends.”
