'50 Shades Of Grey' Movie Release Date: 5 Things We Know About the Steamy Film Adaptation

Culture

Ladies and gentlemen we have a release date. Since America heard the coveted announcement that E.L. James' racy adult novel, Fifty Shades of Grey would become a feature film, speculation spread like wildfire. Who will play the innocent Anastasia Steele and her dark love interest, Christian Grey?

What will it leave out and more importantly, what will it include? Fans have been going crazy trying to solve the mysteries for more than a year, but today we can put several rumors to rest. After what has possibly been the most concealed series of movie announcements of all time (can we at least see a trailer already?! The anticipation is killing us), some aspects of the film have become clear. Here are five things we know about the phenomenon that is the Fifty Shades movie. 

1. The Release Date

America has been awaiting the release date announcement since March of 2012, when Universal Pictures and Focus Features bought the rights to E.L. James' trilogy. Unfortunately, the wait is far from over. The much anticipated film adaptation of Fifty Shades Of Grey will be released in theaters over a year from now, on August 1, 2014, according to The Wrap. 

2. The Director

On June 19, Deadline announced that British director Sam Taylor-Johnson will take on the ambitious task of directing the film from a screen play by Kelly Marcel. The director is best known for Nowhere Boy, a movie about the early years of John Lennon's life. According to the Huffington Post, the announcement marked the end to one of the longest searches for a director for any recent movie. Before Taylor-Johson sealed the deal, the main contenders were rumored by Deadline.com to be Joe Wright, director of the recent hit Anna Karenina, Patty Jenkins of Monster, Bill Condon, who directed Twilight: Breaking Dawn, Bennett Miller of Moneyball and Steven Soderbergh of Magic Mike. According to producer Michael De Luca, “EL James’ characters and vivid storytelling require a director who is willing to take risks and push the envelope where needed, and Sam is a natural fit.”

3. It Will Not Be Suitable For Young Viewers

Okay, that one was a bit of a cop-out, but only because the film's rating is still up in the air (like most details about it). According to the Huffington Post, the Fifty Shades movie is going to be so raunchy that it could very well merit an NC-17 rating. In fact, the British screenwriter Kelly Marcel told The Sunday Times “we are 100 percent going there ... It will be rated NC-17. It will be raunchy." If you've read the books, there's no imagining how far the film will go. You're going to want to leave the kids at home for this one ... seriously. Another thing we know for sure is that we will all feel extremely uncomfortable watching the final product in a theater full of strangers. But we wont let that stop us.

4. Alexis Bledel is the Leading Ana Steele Candidate

Despite our previous predictions for which daring actress will play the role of Anastasia Steele, the list has become somewhat narrower. In E.L. James' description, Ana is a young 20-something fresh out of college: “a pale, brown haired girl with blue eyes too big for her face.” As of now, Alexis Bledel is rumored by Mstarz.com and Entertainmentwise.com to lead the pack, followed by Mila Kunis as a close second. Bledel "has long been associated with the coveted part" and is the favored winner over the Black Swan star, Kunis. Despite early rumors that Harry Potter star Emma Watson would take on the role, the British actress took to twitter to deny the rumors. “Who here actually thinks I would do '50 Shades of Grey' as a movie? Like really. For real. In real life,” Watson asked, according to the Today Show. 

5. Robert Pattinson is Still in the Running For Christian Grey

For readers who have compared E.L. James' Fifty Shades of Grey to an adult version of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight Saga, you could have reason to celebrate. According to Examiner.com, Robert Pattinson could very well say farewell to his Edward Cullen legacy and play the role of Christian Grey in the upcoming film. Rumors indicate that he has surpassed Ian Somerhalder and Henry Cavill who were allegedly being considered to play the part.  Pattinson would aptly portray James' description of Christian — "tall, muscular, and broad-shouldered, with dark copper-colored hair and "smoldering" gray eyes." We've certainly seen his potential for a dark side in Twilight. According to People.com, Pattinson solidified the role after partying with E.L. James.