Charlie Hunnam Drops Out of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’

After the hype and excitement over the casting announcements for the theatrical adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey, now fans of the erotic trilogy suffered their first disappointment today when Charlie Hunnam dropped out of the title role, Christian Grey.

In a statement issued today, Universial Pictures explained Hunnam's departure from the film, saying,

The filmmakers of Fifty Shades of Grey and Charlie Hunnam have agreed to find another male lead given Hunnam’s immersive TV schedule which is not allowing him time to adequately prepare for the role of Christian Grey,

Though his schedule working on Sons of Anarchy is cited as the reason his departure, Sons of Anarchy is set to wrap filming this month and Fifty Shades of Grey would start production next month.  Sources told the Hollywood Reporter that Hunnam became overwhelmed by the media and fan attention over being attached to a major project like this, though he had no reservations about working on the film itself.

Now producers are forced to find another lead to star opposite Dakota Johnson.  If the fans have anything to say about it, the choice might end up being White Collar star Matt Bomer, whom fans recently cited in a petition to recast the role after hearing of Hunnam's casting.