The Fifty Shades of Grey franchise is everything from OTT to intriguing, enticing and controversial. It began with author E.L. James’ simple fan fiction after reading the Twilight saga and became more than anyone could ever expect.
The series of books became the fastest-selling paperback of all time, according to Business Insider. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series sold over 150 million copies and raked in over $1.25 BILLION in movie profit. “My only dream was to see Fifty Shades of Grey in a bookshop - the explosion of interest has taken me completely by surprise,” admitted James, describing the series as her “midlife crisis, writ large” in an interview with Shropshire Star.
Murmurings that the books were on track to become movies erupted in 2014, the franchise skyrocketed further. Questions about who would play the main characters caused all our inner goddesses to bounce with anticipation. Of course, the darker aspects of the series had critics going for it, but fans of the story always came out to support the series.
We know what happens to Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele in the books and movies, but what about the behind-the-scenes details involving the cast and team who produced the amazing franchise? Here are 25 little-known details behind the making of everyone’s favorite guilty pleasure.
25 The Books Are Based In Seattle, Washington, But The Movie Was Filmed Somewhere Else
Seattle, Washington is the home of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey - in the books, that is. The movies stay true to the books’ story, in that Seattle is mentioned, but they were actually filmed in Canada.
Many of the movies’ scenes were filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia. Much of the acting happened around the city’s historic downtown area, Gastown, according to Movie Locations. North Shore Studios in North Vancouver was the home for all the Fifty Shades sets, like Christian Grey’s penthouse apartment.
24 The Production Used An Alias Title While Filming The Movies
The Fifty Shades Darker production team had to use an alias while filming, according to Entertainment Tonight. After the first film was released, fanatics discovered the secret locations for the film. In an effort to outwit the crazed fans, an alias was created.
“An invitation to the wrap party lists ‘Max and Banks’ as the working title of the project,” explained Entertainment Tonight. This alias was likely to not only trick fans trying to catch a peek, but also prevent paparazzi from intruding.
23 The Books’ Author, E.L. James, Was On Set All The Time
After the Fifty Shades books went viral and started selling a lot, Hollywood came looking for a movie deal. “The demand for a movie, from studios and from fans, became almost [too much to handle],” author, E.L. James admitted in an interview with Vanity Fair.
“The goal was to protect the material and its manifestations into movies…. E.L. said she would be all over it like a rash,” explained James’ agent, Valerie Hoskins, to Deadline. Universal Pictures got the movie deal by giving James complete control over everything from casting to wardrobe and dialogue.
You can bet she was on set all the time to make sure everything was exactly how she imagined it would be.
22 The Director Would Battle With E.L. James Often
Because of the deal Universal gave E.L. James, she became “incredibly vocal” and “protective” throughout the whole process of making the first film, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This led to an immediate clash between E.L. and the director of the first film, Sam Taylor-Johnson.
"She would be the first to say as well that it was not easy. It was not easy," expressed Sam about her experience working with E.L. "But we got there. I think both of us felt it was an incredibly painful process."
21 Angelina Jolie Was Offered The Director Position, But She Declined
Angelina Jolie made her directing debut with 2011’s In the Land of Blood and Honey and she did an amazing job. Once news that Fifty Shades would become movies hit the ground, rumors took off stating that Angelina would be up for the director position.
However, the seasoned actress didn’t feel she could portray the subject matter to the best of her ability. “I think with directing, you just think, ‘I'm better at telling some stories than others,’” Angelina explained with blushing cheeks in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
20 A Spy Snuck Into The Set And Almost Got Away With It
Imagine being a fly on the wall during the filming of Fifty Shades Darker. Well, one fan managed to sneak onto the set, according to Cosmopolitan. “I did hear a story about a woman who lied and said she was a PA,” shared director James Foley. He added,
“She snuck on set and started doing little manual things like putting Cokes in the cooler. Finally, somebody started a conversation with her, and something seemed weird, and we discovered that she was a spy.”
19 The Films’ Main Stars, Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan, Had REAL Chemistry
The stars of the films, Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan, were put into a lot of awkward situations with the subject matter of Fifty Shades. They had to learn to really bond on a friendship level to make things work in the chemistry department. And they did an excellent job at it, according to Express.
“What I love about Dakota and Jamie is how they’ve become such good friends and they’ve worked so well together,” shared E.L. James in an interview with Flicks And The City. “You can see that in Freed because it’s the last thing we’ve done and the chemistry between them is off the charts.”
18 Dakota Helped Jamie Perfect His Accent For The Role
Jamie Dornan, who plays Christian Grey, was born and raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His accent was very heavy before starring in Fifty Shades of Grey. Jamie had to work with a dialect coach to perfect his accent so he sounded like he came from America.
Texas-born Dakota Johnson, who plays Anastasia Steele, helped Jamie out a lot with his learning. “I would do dramatic readings of his lines,” she said, according to Mirror. “So I got him a T-shirt with one of his lines printed out phonetically on it.”
17 There Was A Ton Of Giggling During The Extra Romantic Scenes
If you’ve ever read one of the Fifty Shades books or seen one of the movies, you know there are a lot of personal moments between the two main characters. Many of those scenes involved some uncomfortable times, but also some humor.
According to Cosmopolitan, director James Foley explained that those scenes were the least fun to shoot and were a bit tense at times. He shared how at times one of the two stars would start giggling and then they would both erupt in giggles. “And it was all OK, and it wasn't tense anymore,” he said.
16 Those Special Scenes Were Shot In Total Privacy
During the more personal scenes, the two stars were put into completely vulnerable and potentially embarrassing situations. Those “scenes are always closed set, which just means you're down to the minimum number of people in the room,” explained director James Foley to Cosmopolitan. “And since the camera's on a big crane, you remotely control it, so even the camera operator is not in the room.”
The only people in the room during those special scenes were Dakota and Jamie, director James Foley, the assistant director and the camera.
15 The Elevator Scene Was Dakota’s Hardest Scene To Shoot
You would think those personal scenes or the ones with devices would be the hardest ones to shoot, but nope, not for Dakota Johnson. The most difficult scene for her to play her part in was the infamous elevator scene.
“It was in terms of Dakota getting into it,” Foley told Cosmopolitan, noting the set was not cramped. “[She] said that it was the hardest scene for her to shoot. I was so surprised because it wasn't that explicit or anything, but she said she's surrounded by these extras, these strangers.”
14 The Club Scenes Were Also Super Awkward To Film
In addition to the elevator scene and the other personal scenarios, the cast agreed that the club scene of Fifty Shades Freed was uncomfortable to film. According to Eloise Mumford, who plays Anastasia’s bestie Kate, the music you hear in the movie was not playing while they were shooting the scene. The actors were often left dancing to nothing at all. She told Cosmopolitan,
“It always makes me laugh. Luke Grimes [who plays Elliot] and I have had a fair amount of these dancing scenes together, where we have to be sort of... dancing with each other, and it’s actually completely silent while we’re doing it.”
13 Jamie’s Wife, Amelia Warner, Visited Him On Set
Jamie Dornan has a beautiful wife in real life. Her name is Amelia Warner and she knows how lucky she is to be married to the man who plays Christian Grey. But that doesn’t mean she has to necessarily enjoy it all the time.
Amelia had to take in the idea of her husband in all those crazy love scenes with another woman. She joined Jamie on set several times. She was caught on location with Jamie during the beach scenes of Fifty Shades Freed, the ones where Christian rubs suntan lotion on Anastasia’s back.
12 But His Wife Has Never Seen Any Of The Fifty Shades Movies
Although Amelia Warner, Jamie Dornan’s wife, has been on the set of Fifty Shades, she has never seen the movies. In an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show, according to Entertainment Tonight, Jamie shared that she has not seen him as Christian Grey.
“She hasn't watched it," the 34-year-old actor answered. "Why would she watch it?" Jamie does, however, explain that it has nothing to do with the storyline, saying, “I guess I like to think she’s more in love with me than that guy.”
11 The Cast Didn’t Hang Out All The Time During Production
When you see stars interact in a movie, you like to fantasize that they are all besties in real life. Well, according to Eloise Mumford, who plays Katherine Kavanagh, that wasn’t exactly the case for the cast of Fifty Shades.
"We hung out a fair amount," she says, according to Cosmopolitan. "But one of the things I really love about this cast is that everybody was really concentrating on making a great movie. People were there to work, which I, as a total nerd, really appreciated."
10 Charlie Hunnam Was Originally Cast As Christian Grey
We all love Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey; maybe there were some growing pains in the beginning, but now we can’t imagine the series without him in the role. But he almost wasn’t cast as the male lead of Fifty Shades. Instead, Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam was going to be Mr. Grey.
According to Cosmopolitan, Charlie, unfortunately, had to back out of the project due to scheduling conflicts. In an interview with CNN, Charlie explained that he didn’t drop out because he didn’t want to be Christian. With the other projects on his plate, everything was falling back to back to back and he “didn’t want to fail on such a grand scale.”
9 Pretty Little Liars’ Lucy Hale Auditioned For The Role Of Anastasia
Tons of leading women sought the role of Anastasia Steele before Dakota Johnson was cast, including Pretty Little Liars star Lucy Hale. She didn’t pursue the role further because some of the extreme subject matter of the story made her “uncomfortable.”
"There were some things that I was so embarrassed to be reading out loud, but it's one of those things where you have to commit wholeheartedly or you're going to make a fool of yourself," she shared with Cosmopolitan.
8 Singer Rita Ora Had To Do A Lot Of Work For Her Role As Christian’s Little Sister
Before Rita Ora fell into the role of Christian’s little sister, Mia Grey, the character was more of a background part. But Rita took the small role and stole every scene she was a part of and worked hard to play Mia.
According to Independent, the singer-songwriter had to not only perfect her accent, but she also had to learn some French. “I prepped for the role by learning some French first of all, by learning [to speak with an accent that said I was from America] and by really just not being me,” she shared. “I had a brown wig on … so it was just a lot of dedication, it was like going back to school."
7 Actress Kim Basinger In The Role Of Elena Was A HUGE Deal For Casting
Every story needs a villain, or two or three. One of Fifty Shades' least-liked characters is Elena Lincoln, Christian’s “teacher” and very own Mrs. Robinson (as Anastasia would call her). The films’ production teams managed to snatch up actress Kim Basinger for the role – an achievement director James Foley refers to as a “huge get.”
“We considered a lot of people, met with a lot of people, and were not really thrilled,” he explained to Cosmopolitan. “And so we threw it by Kim's people and she responded; she was curious just to talk about it... She was so beautiful. She brings out a nice Hollywood [makes a sizzle sound] to the movie."
6 The Grand Piano Christian Plays Costs Over $200 THOUSAND
One of the more special scenes of the Fifty Shades franchise is when Christian Grey plays his piano. It shows a softer side to the man with a dark past. It’s like when he plays his piano, we get a glimpse into his soul.
That beautiful piano is a Fazioli F278 Grand Piano, according to Cosmopolitan, and it costs nearly $270,000. The stunning instrument is handmade in Italy over three years using red spruce. According to Bloomberg, some parts of the piano are even plated with 18K gold!
5 The Masquerade Ball In Fifty Shades Darker Was Shot In A Real Mansion
Despite being set in Seattle, Washington, the films were shot in Canada. The masquerade ball scene was also shot in Canada and was actually filmed on location at a stunning mansion. According to Entertainment Tonight, instead of building a set for the stunning scene, “the cast and crew filmed in a real multi-million-dollar...mansion.”
The gorgeous 21,000-square-foot mansion is now being redesigned into a luxury retirement home, so any future projects in the location won’t be the same.
4 The Aspen Trip In Fifty Shades Freed Was Shot In Canada
In Fifty Shades Freed, Christian takes Ana and her friends on a vacation. This trip to Aspen was not filmed in Aspen, though. It was shot in Whistler, Canada. According to Eloise Mumford, the whole trip was amazing and hiking in those woods was “spectacular.”
"It was really beautiful. It was just one of those moments where you’re like, 'Oh my gosh, I just can’t believe this is my job," Eloise shared with Cosmopolitan. "There are many unglamorous moments being an actor, and I have had my fair share, so when you have moments like that, you can appreciate them all the more."
3 Jamie Visited A London Dungeon To Get Into Christian’s Mind
Jamie Dornan may have taken method acting to a whole new level to prepare for his role in Fifty Shades of Grey. The Christian Grey actor felt he needed to visit a real playroom in London to get into the mind of Christian.
“It was like nothing I’d experienced before,” he shared with GQ Australia, admitting he might not get along with Christian in real life, according to The Sun. “I had no interest in that world – it doesn’t float my boat. [But] I’ve always been open-minded and liberal.”
2 Kim Kardashian Held A Private Showing Of The First Film Before It Hit Theaters
Reality star Kim Kardashian is a huge fan of the Fifty Shades franchise. After seeing the film for the first time, she was hooked and immediately wanted to hold her own showing for her closest girlfriends.
She posted on her social media, “[Girls'] night watching a private screening of Fifty Shades of Grey!!!!!! OMG it's sooooo good!!!!!” After lining up her girls, it seemed that she left out her younger sister, Kendall Jenner, because Kendall replied to Kim, stating, “And no invite!?!” Maybe Kim didn’t think it was a wise decision watching that content with her little sister.
1 The Film Is Banned In Malaysia
Fifty Shades of Grey deals with some questionable content and is, of course, not everyone’s cup of tea, but Malaysia made the decision to ban the movie altogether from premiering in the country.
According to Business Insider, the film was not cleared by the country's Censorship Board. They did not see an R-rating as being fit for such a film. Chairman Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid released a statement that Fifty Shades of Grey was not natural when it came to its very personal scenes, and it described the content as not being romantic.
Sources: Entertainment Tonight, Mirror, Cosmopolitan, CNN, Business Insider, Vanity Fair, The Sun, GQ Australia
