Channing Tatum bewitches the North Shore on a visit to Salem
Channing Tatum’s blockbuster roles run the gamut, from action heroes to heartthrobs and everything in between. And on a recent visit to Salem, Tatum apparently tapped into his witchier side.
Fresh off a cameo in “Deadpool & Wolverine,” the 44-year-old “21 Jump Street” and “Magic Mike” star brought his family on a three-day tour of Salem’s spooky and historic sites, Witch City Walking Tours shared in a Facebook post. Joining Tatum on the tour was his 11-year-old daughter Everly, her nanny, Tatum’s sister, and family friends, according to tour company owner Beth Crowley.
The tour was specifically designed with the preteen “Evie” in mind, Crowley told Boston.com.
“She’s very interested in Halloween, she’s interested in witchcraft, and this was just a trip for her,” Crowley said, clearing up rumors that Tatum was in town to film or promote a movie.
The three-day adventure, meticulously crafted by the Witch City Walking Tours guest services manager and Tatum’s team, featured stops at Gallows Hill Theatre, the Witch Dungeon Museum, the Peabody Essex Museum, and the Rebecca Nurse Homestead and Samuel Parris archaeological site in Danvers, among other spots.
The group also made their own brooms and stopped in at local witchcraft store Pentagram to get private tarot card readings and shop for crystals.
“I want to stress that this entire tour was crafted and curated for his daughter,” Crowley said. “Which I think is amazing. It shows character. He was just amazing with his daughter, like holding her hand, hugging her, joking with her. It was just the coolest thing to see.”
According to Crowley, Tatum was particularly enthralled during a visit to the Witch House.
“It was honestly like hanging out with friends,” she said. “I never felt like, ‘Oh my god, these are celebrities, or a celebrity and his family.’ They were so amazing.”
Witch City Walking Tours is a longtime fan-favorite, with its “History & Hauntings of Salem Guided Walking Tour” ranking No. 1 for Tripadvisor’s best cultural and historical tours in the U.S. and No. 2 in the world. Crowley said she’s had some celebrities join her tours before, but a three-day private tour for a high-profile actor is a first.
Tatum was also spotted out and about at Village Tavern in Salem and Anchor Pub & Grille in Beverly, according to a post in the Facebook group North Shore Dining. While some fans did approach the actor to ask for pictures as he explored the North Shore, Crowley said the community was ultimately respectful of Tatum’s privacy and personal space.
“We definitely had people recognizing him, and I think the word got out there, but he’s so gracious and so down to earth,” she said.
And according to Crowley, local businesses really went the extra mile, with local clothing label District Trading Company even making Tatum a custom “Magic Mike” sweatshirt featuring a Michael Myers mask.
Tatum and his family were “so in love with the city of Salem, and so they were so gracious,” Crowley said. “He was just so, so appreciative of every business in Salem and how kind people were and how they made it such a special time for his daughter, so that’s what they’re gonna leave remembering.”