While it’s not strictly true to say that Steven Soderbergh’s next planned pic – male stripper drama Magic Mike – has been completely loaded with testosterone, it could certainly benefit from more of a female presence. And that’s just what the director is adding, with Olivia Munn signing on to the cast.
Magic Mike sees Channing Tatum (who based the concept on his own past as a teenage stripper in Florida) playing the titular role, a male exotic dancer who trains up a new protégé in Alex Pettyfer.
Matthew McConaughey is aboard to play Dallas, himself a former stripper who now owns the club where Mike works. And then there’s True Blood’s Joe Manganiello as “Big Dick” Richie, whose name should pretty much sum up his appeal to the crowd, and Matt Bomer as another clothes-shedding type. On the lady side, there’s also Cody Horn as Pettyfer’s character’s sister, and Riley Keough as his troubled girlfriend.
Munn will be playing the love interest for Tatum. Having gotten her start on US geek fest Attack of the Show, Munn has spun that early recognition into a career that includes more TV work (The Daily Show) and several small film roles, including appearances in **Iron Man 2 **and Date Night. She has parts in **I Don’t Know How She Does It **and Freeloaders coming up, along with what might prove to be her truly big break, one of the leads on Aaron Sorkin’s new HBO series, More As This Story Develops.
Working from Reid Carolin's script, Soderbergh kicks off shooting Magic Mike later this month.