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Channing Tatum can add children’s book author to his resume! Tatum’s book, The One and Only Sparkella, is coming out May 4, and the actor is opening up about the inspiration behind the book: his daughter, Everly.
Although Tatum might seem like the ultimate girl dad now, it wasn’t always easy for him. After his 2019 divorce, Tatum experienced serious worries about what his relationship with Everly would look like in the future, admitting that he had a real “fear about connecting to Everly” as a single father.
Keep reading for more details.
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During a recent interview with Parents, Tatum admitted that Everly was Sparkella in many ways. “She is on many levels. Just like Sparkella, Evie loves to play tricks, wear crazy outfits, and be different from everyone,” he explained. “She’s bold, beautiful, and magical in every way. We played a lot in her room over quarantine, and it helped flesh out the story. Even when I was home alone, I would find an item of hers that gave me an idea.”
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However, his relationship with Everly has not always been quite so intuitive. When Tatum split from wife Jenna Dewan and became a single father, he definitely experienced some worries about what it would mean for his connection with his daughter.
“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,” Tatum said.
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That’s not all. “I paint my face, I wear tutus—rarely am I around the house without some sort of costume on,” he added.
And he wants other dads to start embracing their daughters’ imagination as well.”I want dads not to be afraid to go into their daughter’s world and discover who they are,” he told Parents.
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For Tatum, it has been an incredibly rewarding journey. “I jumped with both feet into this magical world, and I was rewarded with a kind of love that I don’t think I would have ever been able to have otherwise,” he explained.
So sweet!
