Channing Tatum's G.I. Joe Kept Under Wraps

By Tim Nudd

08/04/2009 at 11:50 AM EDT

Paramount Pictures wants Channing Tatum's fans to decide for themselves whether the actor's summer blockbuster, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, is worth seeing.

The studio has decided not to preview the film for most critics before Friday's opening, reports the Associated Press. Paramount says it doesn't want a repeat of what happened to its other summer blockbuster, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

"After the chasm we experienced with Transformers 2 between the response of audiences and critics, we chose to forgo opening-day print and broadcast reviews as a strategy to promote G.I. Joe," said Rob Moore, vice chairman of Paramount. "We want audiences to define this film."

In the movie, Tatum, 29, who married his Step Up dance partner Jenna Dewan earlier this summer, plays a character named Duke, who leads an elite, high-tech military team that battles a corrupt arms dealer. Speaking to ArtistDirect.com, the actor said he took inspiration from the great action-movie actors of the past.

"I always loved Bruce Willis," said Tatum. "He was always the 'normal guy.' He wasn't this bionic man, but he was that regular guy that could whoop ass. I love [Sylvester] Stallone and [Arnold] Schwarzenegger, too. Those were guys I grew up on."

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