Zoë Kravitz talks about her 1st paparazzi photos with Channing Tatum becoming a meme
Zoë Kravitz is opening up about her relationship with "wonderful human" Channing Tatum.
The pair — brought together for her directorial project Pussy Island, in which he stars — have been linked since early 2021. However, it wasn't until that summer, when she was snapped by paparazzi catching a lift on the back of his BMX bike, that the news was out.
"He's just a wonderful human," the 33-year-old told GQ. "He makes me laugh and we both really love art and talking about art and the exploration of why we do what we do. We love to watch a film and break it down and talk about it and challenge each other."
Pussy Island filmed in the Yucatán jungle for three months over this past summer and she admitted that while she got charged up by the creative and collaborative aspects of making the film, it was also stressful being at the helm and carrying it all on her shoulders. She credited the Magic Mike star for being a calming presence.
"Whether it was making me tea or pouring me a drink or going to whip someone into shape or whatever —he really was my protector and it was really wonderful and sweet. I think if you can do something like that together, it's a good test. And we came out even stronger," said Kravitz, who is now half-way through editing the film.
Kravitz said that they tried to keep the relationship "sacred and private" for as long as they could, “so that you don’t have to even think about what the world thinks about it." But after denying early rumors that they had coupled up, a paparazzo infamously captured them in Manhattan's East Village as he pedaled her on his small set of wheels and her arms were wrapped around them.
The Batman actress explained to the outlet that it was the first time they had even gone outside together. She was walking over to her writing partner’s home, a few blocks away, and he was going to tag along on his bike. On the way, she was overheated due to her outfit choice, jeans on the hot summer day, so he offered her a lift.
"I was sweating and he was like, 'Get on the bike, I'll ride you over and you can relax,'" she explained. They spotted the pap along the way and photos quickly went viral, becoming an instant meme.
Kravitz also spoke about her brief marriage to Karl Glusman ending just prior to her relationship with Tatum. She said that she pressured herself into getting married in 2019 when inside she had self-doubt.
"I just learned to think about who I am and what I want," the daughter of Kravitz and Lisa Bonet told the outlet. "You meet someone who's amazing and wants to marry you, and there's nothing wrong with that. If there's nothing wrong, then why wouldn't you do it? You love them and that's what you do."
The truth was, she wasn't sure she wanted to be married or have children.
"It's a hard question to ask yourself: 'Maybe I don't want the thing that I'm supposed to want, a marriage, children, any of it. I don’t know if I want that at all,'" she said. "That's an uncomfortable question, especially for a woman to ask herself." (Tatum is also divorced — from Jenna Dewan, with whom he shares a 9-year-old daughter, Everly.)
Kravitz said that having fun in her 20s, she felt there was "something romantic and exciting" about settling down. "Like, Oh, I'm an adult. I stay home and cook now. I bake bread.' Then I think you do that for a couple years and you realize there's still a lot of life to be had… I'm done romanticizing the 'old is domestic' thing. It’s cute for a minute and then it's not."
The article also talked the making of Pussy Island and her past projects, including her creative input making The Batman and disappoint over how High Fidelity played out. Additionally, Kravitz's shared some tidbits about her friendship with Taylor Swift, including how when she was in London making Batman during the pandemic, they were in the same "pod." Kravitz co-wrote and provided background vocals for "Lavender Haze" on Swift's Midnights.
