“Oh, this is psychotic”: Dakota Johnson Was Frustrated With ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Rewrites, Claimed She Signed Up To Do a Different Film

Dakota Johnson Was Frustrated With ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Rewrites, Claimed She Signed Up To Do a Different Film
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It’s been 8 years since Fifty Shades of Grey hit the theatres. The Sam Taylor-Johnson directorial continues to hold a special place in fans’ hearts. The movie, which was infamous for being overly explicit, was turning everyone’s eyes at the time. It hugely propelled Dakota Johnson, who became a global phenomenon in no time, to new heights. Life wouldn’t be the same for the Crazy in Alabama star after that. And as it later turned out, she wasn’t a hundred percent satisfied with her role.

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Dakota Johnson didn’t sign up for this version of Fifty Shades of Grey

Dakota Johnson
Dakota Johnson was left frustrated with Fifty Shades of Grey rewrites

In a cover story for Vanity Fair, Dakota Johnson is looking back at her decision to star in the Fifty Shades trilogy. The trilogy was based on EL James’ best-selling books. Director Johnson had a vision of bringing to life a stripped-down version of the book.

Johnson would soon realize that it was far from reality. The script was subjected to innumerable rewrites. The Lost Daughter star said,

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“I signed up to do a very different version of the film we ended up making.” 

All this was in spite of the fact that EL James would retain creative control over the new direction the movie would take.

Also Read: “All day, every day, she just demanded”: Dakota Johnson Hated ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Author For Being Even More Demanding Than Her Novel’s Protagonist

Dakota Johnson was not so sure about shooting the “cheesy” scenes

Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan in Fifty Shades of Grey
Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan in Fifty Shades of Grey

The How to Be Single actor would soon realize how problematic James maintaining creative control would turn out to be. The Persuasion star said,

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“She had a lot of creative control, all day, every day, and she just demanded that certain things happen. There were parts of the books that just wouldn’t work in a movie, like the inner monologue, which was at times incredibly cheesy. It wouldn’t work to say out loud. It was always a battle. Always.”

There were other hiccups in the shoot though, which would result in Dakota Johnson dubbing it as “mayhem”. 

Also Read: “They are scared of me”: Dakota Johnson Feels Guys Became Scared of Her After The Explicit S*x Scenes in ’50 Shades of Grey’

Dakota Johnson found the Fifty Shades shoot a mayhem

Dakota Johnson
Dakota Johnson found it difficult to cope with the constant chopping and changes

The Cha Cha Real Smooth star was left scared by “a lot of different disagreements.” There came a point when they would “do the takes of the movie that [author] Erika wanted to make, and then we would do the takes of the movie that we wanted to make.”

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The 33-year-old continued,

The night before, I would rewrite scenes with the old dialogue so I could add a line here and there. It was like mayhem all the time.” 

Despite all the roadblocks in the way and the fact that it was all ‘psychotic’, Johnson doesn’t regret being a part of the $1.3 billion grossing film trilogy.

Also Read: “It’s weird seeing you here”: Dakota Johnson’s On Screen Lover Was Humiliated on Television after Singer Made Crude Joke About Actor’s ‘Fifty Shades’ Role

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Source: The Hollywood Reporter

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Written by Smriti Sneh

Articles Published: 205

Smriti Sneh is a Content Writer at Fandom Wire specializing in celebrities and everything pop-culture. Being a literature research scholar, she is cashing in on her writing skills by working in the entertainment news sector - studying literary theories by day, and navigating celebrity net worth through the night. Although you can find her writing poems at any and all hours.