Despite being a massive box office success, many audiences who saw Fifty Shades of Grey earlier this year were surprisingly disappointed with how tame the film was compared to the books. Original author E. L. James also reportedly had many gripes with the production herself too, with her disdain for the work of director Sam Taylor-Johnson causing a lot of friction on set.
Though any reasons have yet to formally announced, Taylor-Johnson and screenwriter Kelly Marcel will not be returning to work on the sequel, Fifty Shades Darker (what a great title, by the way). Lead actors Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson still remain in the project as per their contract, but Universal is definitely already looking for new directors and writers for the project.
Honestly, it sounds like just making these movies was a bit of a mess with the leads reportedly not having the best chemistry on set and James wanting the films to skew a little more erotic than Taylor-Johnson’s directions. With Fifty Shades of Grey being one of Universal’s biggest opening’s to date and audiences demanding a little more titillation, it wouldn’t surprise me if Universal goes with a director who will take series in a sexier direction.
Hey, it’s what the people want.
[via The Wrap]
