Why Thandiwe Newton Is Exiting 'Magic Mike 3'

Salma Hayek will be replacing the actress in the final installment of the 'Magic Mike' franchise.

Thandiwe Newton is stepping down from Magic Mike’s Last Dance. A Warner Bros. Pictures studio spokesperson tells ET, "Thandiwe Newton has made the difficult decision to step away from the production of Warner Bros. Pictures’ Magic Mike Last Dance to deal with family matters."

ET can also confirm that Salma Hayek is joining the Channing Tatum-led cast, replacing Newton as the film's female lead.

ET spoke with Tatum at a London screening of his latest flick, The Lost City, where he promised fans that the upcoming third installment in the Magic Mike franchise will be "wild."

Salma Hayek is replacing Thandiwe Newton in the final 'Magic Mike' movie. - Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb

"We’re gonna go big. I mean truly, we're not gonna leave anything on the bench. We're taking it out, we're putting it on stage, it's gonna be wild," he teased. "... I was like, 'Why are we going to make a third one if not just go really, really, really for the stars?'"

As for what it's been like on set, Tatum said "it's been fun reuniting with the crew," adding that the project is "kind of like home."

Magic Mike’s Last Dance is being made exclusively for HBO Max. Reid Carolin, who wrote the first two movies, is returning as screenwriter, while the film’s original director, Steven Soderbergh, is back behind the camera. Magic Mike XXL director Gregory Jacobs is producing alongside Carolin, Nick Wechsler and Peter Kiernan. 

A release date for the film has yet to be announced, but production has begun on the project in the United Kingdom.

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