14 DAY TRIAL // A replacement for Charlie Hunnam as Christian Grey in the upcoming “Fifty Shades of Grey,” the first installment in a new movie franchise, has been found. His name is Jamie Dornan and, as you can see in the photo attached to this article as well, he’s drop-dead gorgeous.
So, at least on this account, he’s perfect for the role – which, of course, isn’t to say that Hunnam wasn’t good looking.
The movie studio hasn’t said anything official yet about Dornan’s casting, but The Hollywood Reporter notes that it’s almost a done deal: he’s already said yes and he’s in talks with the studio about his contract.
Dornan, for those who are not familiar with him, is a former Calvin Klein underwear model born in Northern Ireland, whose acting credits include the shows “The Fall” and “Once Upon a Time.” He also dated British actress Keira Knightley for a while.
As we said above, physically, Dornan could work as a Christian Grey, even though we would bet good money that many fans of the book still believe Ian Somerhalder or Matt Bomer are better choices in this regard.
As for whether Dornan has the talent / skills to pull off the role, that remains to be seen. However, his casting was foreshadowed by producer Michael De Luca’s earlier comments about how they were looking for a “fresh face” for the much talked about role.
“I feel like everyone has an idea of what these characters look like and sound like, so to present the world with fresh faces – where no pre-conceived notions or baggage come with it – is best,” he said, adding that the casting process was “like casting Superman or James Bond.”
THR says that Dornan was actually the studio’s first choice, before Hunnam was even considered. So this begs the question: could the whole Hunnam fiasco have been just a PR stunt meant to boost interest in the film even more? If so, would he agree to play his part when he’s definitely desperate to be taken seriously as an actor?
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