MGM Picks Up Channing Tatum's Road Comedy 'Dog'

The film will be co-directed by Tatum and Reid Carolin.

Channing Tatum’s Dog has a found a home.

MGM has picked up North American rights to the road comedy, which is being co-directed by Tatum and Reid Carolin. Tatum is also starring in the pic.

The moves comes on the heels of an international sellout of the project at AFM, where Tatum and Carolin delivered their presentation to a packed room of distributors. It also marks the first big acquisition by Michael De Luca in his new role as MGM’s motion picture group chairman.

Dog tracks two hard-charging former Army Rangers paired against their will: Briggs (Tatum), and Lulu, a Belgian Malinois, as they race down the Pacific Coast in hopes of making it to a fellow soldier's funeral on time. Along the way, they drive each other crazy, confront the possibility that pet psychics are real and begin to reckon with the one thing they were trained never to do: surrender.

The script was written by Carolin and based on a story by Carolin and Brett Rodriguez. Gregory Jacobs will produce along with Peter Kiernan and Rodriguez via Free Association. Ken Meyer and Betsy Danbury will executive produce.

Dog is set to begin principal photography in May, with MGM setting a release date for Valentine’s Day weekend 2021. Tatum has had good fortune with that date, as two of his previous films, The Vow (2012) and Dear John (2010), scored big openings in that release corridor.

“Having known and admired Reid and Chan for years as great guys and natural-born storytellers, I couldn’t be prouder and more excited to work with them, Greg Jacobs and Glen Basner on this, their first film as directors," De Luca said Monday in a statement. "The story’s strong heart, humor and power reflect not only their talent but their humanity, and all of us at MGM hope this is the first of many."

Cassidy Lange will oversee for the studio.

FilmNation repped the international rights, with CAA and CAA Media Finance Group brokering the domestic license to MGM. Tatum, Carolin and Free Association are repped by CAA and Hansen, Jacobson.