Jamie Dornan successfully embodied the kinky billionaire Christian Grey in the famed erotic romantic drama, Fifty Shades of Grey. Based on E.L. James’ trilogy of the same name, the Twillight-inspired franchise dives into the BDSM lifestyle between a possessive and powerful businessman and a recent college graduate, Anastasia Steele. However, Dornan wasn’t the first choice for the role. Before he landed the lead role, the studio had initially chosen Charlie Hunnam, the Sons of Anarchy star, for Christian Grey. When the news of Hunnam as the titular billionaire broke out, it ignited fans’ backlash over the casting decision. Shortly, Universal dropped the news that Hunnam had backed away from the franchise.
There has been a lot of speculation over why Hunnam had decided to drop out of the controversial film. Many suspected that the actor didn’t want to go through with filming the overly intimate scenes as Fifty Shades of Grey is a book that revolves almost purely around sex. Some also believed that Hunnam couldn’t take the heat from haters. The actor has stayed silent about his decision to part ways with the film. However, years later, he clarified what really had happened that caused him to pass on the role.
Charlie Hunnam Was Excited to Play Christian Grey
Despite all the graphic violence depicted throughout Sons of Anarchy, an episode from Season 7 gained controversy for a surprisingly different reason.
Despite what many believe, Charlie Hunnam was looking forward to playing Christian Grey when he was cast to play the lead billionaire with a BDSM kink in the bedroom. “It’s incredibly exciting,” the actor told E! News in September 2013 after the news broke out that he was slated to play the kinky billionaire in Fifty Shades of Grey. “He’s a very complex and fascinating character, and I just feel really excited and delighted to be entrusted with the job of bringing him to life, and it’s a big responsibility,” said Hunnam. In 2013, Charlie Hunnam was one of the hottest actors in Hollywood, having won millions of hearts as the rugged biker, Jackson “Jax” Teller, in FX’s Sons of Anarchy. Hunnam would undoubtedly make a fabulous Christian Grey, having the charisma and the kind of intimidation already with his character Jax rising up the ranks as the outlaw president of SAMCROW. The prospect of the 32-year-old British actor alongside the 23-year-old Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steeles was something very exciting.
The sex-positive actor was not only thrilled about the role, but he also joked about being “prepared” for it when he teased fans about the upcoming erotic elements of the film. “I spent a lifetime preparing myself for that,” he joked. Hunnam was simply perfect for the role. However, when author E.L. James broke the news of him being cast as Christian Grey on X (Twitter), Fifty Shades of Grey fans initially pushed back on the casting decision. Matt Bomer supporters even started a petition, hoping that the White Collar star would replace Hunnam as the male lead role in the movie and that Alexis Bledel would replace Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele. The petition gained a lot of traction online with more than 50 thousand signatures. It read:
The White Collar star responded to the petition, saying that he was “touched” that fans thought of him for the role. However, he didn’t express any interest in playing the role and wished to see Hunnam and Johnson in the movie. The producer of Fifty Shades of Grey also tried to defend the casting decision by reminding fans that they had to consider multiple aspects of actors other than their looks when choosing the right actors for the lead roles. The drama continued as both actors prepared for the role. However, just one month before the filming for Fifty Shades of Grey started, Universal broke the news that Charlie Hunnam had withdrawn from the franchise. In a statement, Universal said:
“The filmmakers of Fifty Shades of Grey and Charlie Hunnam have agreed to find another male lead given Hunnam’s immersive TV schedule which is not allowing him time to adequately prepare for the role of Christian Grey.”
Despite the official statement, fans speculated that Hunnam dropped out of the film due to the intense backlash he had received, given the timing of the news. Dakota Johnson, on the other hand, stayed on the job even after her “Mr. Grey” had left her. After Hunnam’s departure from the franchise, the role went to Jamie Dornan, who also received severe backlash from angry fans, who took to social media to suggest The Vampire Diaries star Ian Somerhalder for the role of Christian Grey. Unlike Hunnam, who seemed unbothered by the attacks from book fans, Dornan had to take his family into hiding, fearing for his safety. The backlash took a toll on Dornan, who has since avoided major franchises after playing the lead in Fifty Shades of Grey.
It seems that fans were bound to be angry no matter who the studio cast for the role as long as it didn’t go to Matt Bomer or Ian Somerhalder. Though the amount of hatred the actors received seemed pretty extreme, fans are often unhappy with casting decisions, especially when the work is based on a franchise with an established fan base. Fifty Shades of Grey was initially fan fiction derived from Twilight, so it made sense that the fan base had strong opinions about the cast.
Charlie Hunnam Said Dropping Out of Fifty Shades of Grey Was “Heartbreaking”
The real reason Hunnam dropped out of Fifty Shades of Grey is exactly what Universal said in the statement. Despite speculations and theories, the actor simply couldn’t commit to the film due to conflicts of scheduling. Hunnam also said that his decision to leave the franchise was one of the worst decisions he had to make in his professional life. During an interview with V Man in 2015, the Sons of Anarchy star reflected on his decision not to take the lead role in Fifty Shades of Grey, calling it “the worst professional experience” of his life. He had given his word to committing to Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak on top of filming the final season of Sons of Anarchy. Due to the scheduling conflict, he had to drop out of Fifty Shades of Grey, which left him feeling heartbroken. “It was the most emotionally destructive and difficult thing that I’ve ever had to deal with professionally,” said Hunnam. He revealed that the decision felt “heartbreaking.”
According to Hunnam, reaching the decision to exit the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise took him a very long time. He “didn’t know what to do” with the situation, since he never saw himself as the kind of actor who’d bail on a film. “I really pride myself on being a professional and a man of keeping my word,” Hunnam told the magazine. “It was deeply unpleasant and challenging emotionally.” He called Sam Taylor-Johnson, the director of Fifty Shades of Grey, personally to break the news. The two were on the phone for 20 minutes, both heartbroken about the fact that Hunnam was unable to lead the franchise. “I called her and we both cried our eyes out on the phone for 20 minutes,” Hunnam revealed. “I needed to tell her that this was not going to work… There was a lot of personal stuff going on in my life that left me on real emotional shaky ground and mentally weak. I just got myself so f—king overwhelmed and I was sort of having panic attacks about the whole thing.”
Hunnam clarified that he wasn’t intimidated by the sexual nature of the film, pointing out that he had already been involved in many intimate scenes that aired on national TV. Hunnam was proud of his appearance and wasn’t shy about showing his body on screen. It seems that the decision to withdraw from Fifty Shades of Grey had nothing to do with backlash or the book’s controversy but was purely due to scheduling conflicts.
