For months upon months, fans of E.L. James' "Fifty Shades of Grey" franchise have been buzzing over just who will play the role of the S&M obsessed billionaire Christian Grey. 

One of the names frequently mentioned has been "Magic Mike" actor Channing Tatum. However, to what will surely be to the disappointment of many, the star is reportedly taking a hiatus from acting in 2013.

Tatum, who is married to his "Step Up" co-star Jenna Dewan, is looking to hone in on his creativity working behind the camera as opposed to swooning the ladies in front of it. 

The 32-year-old star recently started his very own production company and spoke to Entertainment Weekly about what he has in store for it.

"Reid (Carolin, his production partner) and I have about three or four ideas that we love that are all in the hopper. By the end of next year, we're going to shut things down and write the first thing we're going to direct," he said. "We're going to be like, alright, no more acting parts for a minute, let's take a few and really get caring about that section of our career."

Tatum's directorial aspirations are no secret to the world. He opened up to Details magazine earlier in the year saying that he "didn't want to be in anymore movies that he hadn't produced."

The actor being completely out of the picture for a "Fifty Shades" role isn't confirmed by any means but reports do seem to suggest that Tatum might not have such a strong running for the Grey character now. E.L. James and her production team have been working feverishly on the pre-production process for the racy flick and it appears they must look in other places, assuming Tatum is committed to his directing endeavors.

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