You don't even have to see White House Down to know that its stars, Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx, are pretty into each other. The two have been unofficially doing publicity for the movie for months now, starting with their post-Oscars appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, which brought us the instant ear worm classic "Channing All Over Your Tatum." It involved Tatum writhing on a piano and shoving everyones' minds into the gutter. It was pretty great.
By the time they followed it up with a full-fledged music video last week it was pretty obvious that the chemistry between Capitol cop John Cale (Tatum) and President James Sawyer (Foxx) was going to be one of the main reasons to see White House Down, the new action movie in which terrorists take over 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, and only one man can help get the President out alive. It also helps that the movie is directed by the great Roland Emmerich, who blew up the White House in Independence Day and knocked an aircraft carrier into it in The Day After Tomorrow, just for good measure. With Independence Day coming up this week, really, what better way to celebrate?
Above you can watch my conversation with Tatum and Foxx, in which I ask them about the secret to their bromance-- it involves Foxx taking over a DJ booth at a party in Mexico-- and why Tatum risks his neck over and over again on the set to make sure that he does his own stunts. Foxx-- a smart veteran of the movie business-- says he's perfectly happy to let his stunt double earn his paycheck. The two of them were perched on the top floor of the Hay-Adams Hotel in Washington, D.C., and yes, that's the real White House you see behind them. The area just outside that iconic black gate is free space for anyone to gather, protest and make as much noise as you want, and from time to time the sounds of chants or drums or just general noise would make their way up to the interview room. The chatter you see at the beginning of the interview came from me asking about Tatum's newborn baby, who was just 23 days old when we had our conversation. It's a cliche to say that new parents are literally glowing, but seriously, this is one insanely happy guy.
For more on White House Down you can check out the video blog that Sean and I recorded in front of the White House, between our interviews with the cast; at that post you can also rate the film if you've seen it, and discuss it with spoilers. There's also Kristy's joyful GIF review, in which the madness of White House Down can only be expressed with looped animation from Ernest Goes To Camp, or Eric's more straightforward regular review. Oh, and there's also the original "Channing All Over Your Tatum" video for your viewing pleasure:
