Joe Manganiello Thought Magic Mike Would Fail, but Then Fans Ripped McConaughey's Thong Off ...

The Editors

May 22, 2019 2:34 PM

In a recent interview for the June cover of Men's Health , Joe Manganiello-Magic Mike star and husband to Sofia Vergara-shared stories from his time on set of the blockbuster male stripper movie.

Magic Mike Fans Tore McConaughey's Thong Off

The film starred Manganiello, Matthew McConaughey, and many other muscled, often-shirtless men-including Channing Tatum, whose real-life experience as a stripper in Tampa inspired parts of the story.

Manganiello says he thought Magic Mike was poised to fail. Early into production, the film hadn't been picked up by a studio, and so it began as an independent project."We made it for like six million bucks in like, maybe twenty-three days at the most?" Manganiello said. "It might have even been less. Nobody is gonna see this."

But then the clothes started coming off. For one of the dancing numbers, the crew brought in an audience of extras: scores of girls who had no idea what was about to happen."We came out and did that first routine and they were just frozen in their chairs," he said. "The lights go out. The dance is over. We all go backstage and there was this pause for maybe five to ten seconds. And then there was some rustling. And then we just heard this deafening screaming. And it was like, oh shit."

Magic Mike Fans Tore McConaughey's Thong Off BusinessInsider USA Images

On another occasion, a girl ripped off McConaughey's thong, forcing him to tuck and roll backwards to get away. "The girls were animals," Manganiello said. "Absolute animals."

During opening night, Manganiello said the cast was stampeded by fans. Security was forced to literally hold people back. As the ticket sale numbers began trickling in, the cast was shocked. "[We were] going holy shit! Oh my godddd!

Magic Mike Fans Tore McConaughey's Thong Off BusinessInsider USA Images

Since its release, Magic Mike has grossed over $160 million and spawned the massive sequel Magic Mike XXL. Manganiello said the sequel was the movie the cast really wanted to make.

Manganiello also pointed out the film's darker side, hidden beneath all the abs and moves. "When you remove the dance sequences then its all dark," he said. "Its all just about this guy whos this king inside of a bubble, but when he steps out of it hes a loser."

Of course Manganiello and the rest of the cast couldn't ignore all the fun that made the movie something special. "To take that seriously without any form of irony, thats probably my favorite type of comedy."