Matt Bomer has accredited 'Magic Mike's' success to Channing Tatum's 'Pony' dance.

The 37-year-old actor - who appears alongside Channing in the original movie and the latest instalment 'Magic Mike XXL' - has revealed watching the 35-year-old star's ''body defy gravity'' while dancing to Ginuwine's hit song was when he realised that the film about male strippers was going to be something special.

Matt said: ''I knew (the film would be a hit) the first time I saw Channing rehearse the 'Pony' number. I knew he was an amazing dancer and I knew his charisma onscreen is great. But when I saw him do that, and I saw his body defy gravity, I was so thoroughly entertained on an audience level. I was just like, 'How does somebody do that?'''

However, while the 'In Time' star realised 'Magic Mike' would be a hit, he wasn't prepared for just quite how many people would see him stripping off.

Speaking to Collider.com, Matt said: ''I thought I was part of this really gritty girlfriend experience, and then all of a sudden it was this big studio summer release and I was like, 'Oh, more people are going to see me naked than I thought! This is great.'''