Just two days after the announcement of the upcoming Fifty Shades of Grey Unrated Edition, director Sam Taylor-Johnson has made it official – she’s not returning for the Fifty Shades of Grey sequel. Deadline posted the following statement from the director:
“Directing Fifty Shades Of Grey has been an intense and incredible journey for which I am hugely grateful. I have Universal to thank for that. I forged close and lasting relationships with the cast, producers and crew and most especially, with Dakota and Jamie. While I will not be returning to direct the sequels, I wish nothing but success to whosoever takes on the exciting challenges of films two and three.”
Taylor-Johnson’s adaptation of the E L James novel has earned an impressive $558.6 million at the worldwide box office and was made for just $40 million. However, it has not been a secret that the director clashed with James while making the film, and her departure is not much of a surprise. There is no word on who may replace her, although both Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson will reprise their roles of Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele.
Fifty Shades of Grey also stars Jennifer Ehle, Luke Grimes, Victor Rasuk, Eloise Mumford, Max Martini, Rita Ora, Marcia Gay Harden and Callum Keith Rennie.
A global phenomenon, “Fifty Shades of Grey” was first published in 2011 and follows the relationship of 27-year-old billionaire Christian Grey (Dornan) and college student Anastasia Steele (Johnson). Subsequent novels in the series, “Fifty Shades Darker” (2011) and “Fifty Shades Freed” (2012) explore the couple?s deepening relationship. The trilogy has been translated in over 50 languages worldwide since its release. To date, the ?Fifty Shades? trilogy has sold over 70 million copies worldwide in e-book and print, making it one of the fastest-selling book series ever.
