Entertainment

5 Questions About 'Fifty Shades' Sequels

by Mary Grace Garis

l across the Internet there are simultaneous screams of pain and ecstasy and it can only mean one thing: as confirmed at the Fifty Shades First fan screening even today in New York, Fifty Shades of Grey's sequels Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed are getting their own movies. Though Fifty Shades of Grey won't formally debut in theaters worldwide until February 13, it's already had record-breaking ticket sales. So, you made this happen, America. I'm just hoping we're ready to live with it.

In any case, I can already hear you excited Fifty Shades fans shouting to the heavens, asking "COULD LIFE BE ANY MORE PERFECT?" And I can also hear all you Fifty Shades naysayers asking, "Fifty Shades of Grey was a trilogy?" Yes, it was. And I'm sorry you had to find out this way.

I'm sure the questions don't end there. So as we brace ourselves for yet another long series of book-to-film remakes, and wait in anticipation for the first Fifty Shades of Grey to, you know, actually hit theaters, I brainstormed some inquiries about the upcoming films. And well I don't have all the answers (trust me on that one), there are things worth wondering and speculation, such as...

When can we expect the sequels to come out?

Remember when we were little and the Harry Potter movies became kind of an unofficial Thanksgiving tradition (with the occasional summer blockbuster release)? Do you think that the Fifty Shades sequels will do something similar, releasing a film yearly every Valentine's Day? It seems like opportune (if not slightly sadistic) timing.

Will they have two versions of each film?

That is, the first Fifty Shades of Grey is slated to have two versions, an explicit version and a clean version. You know, as clean as you can make a film about BDSM. Will the next two films follow suit?

Will the last book be broken up into two films?

Honestly, if they do my inner goddess will throw herself off a cliff. WHICH ISN'T A SPECIFIC FIFTY SHADES OF GREY DIG. I thought it was a classless move with the last Harry Potter, and I thought it was a classless AND unnecessary move with Twilight, and don't even get me started on what Peter Jackson did with a 300 page book.

Will Sam Taylor-Johnson stay on to direct?

There was MAD drama between the film's director and E.L. James, with Taylor-Johnson saying James was "difficult" to work with and that they definitely fought. While Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan are possibly locked in a contract to reprise their roles (probably, I'm not their lawyer), I doubt Taylor-Johnson has any obligation to stick around.

Why?

No matter how divisive the books, it has an inordinately huge following. There are people who can't wait to watch it but no matter what you think, no one can argue the Fifty Shades is going to bring in a big audience, as it is the hot topic in America right now.

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