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Charlie Hunnam just can’t seem to avoid one important question: Why did he drop out of Fifty Shades of Grey?!
According to a new interview, it wasn’t because of too much pressure. It also certainly wasn’t because he was scared. Instead, the young actor was simply too busy.
“It’s very personal to me, and every decision I make comes from my heart,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “There’s nothing ever monetarily or fame-seeking or any of the other motivations that sometimes go hand-in-hand with this profession… It was very painful, and it was very difficult [decision].”
Turns out, the role of playing Christian Grey would ultimately begin 48 hours after wrapping the Sons of Anarchy season six finale. In addition, if shooting Fifty Shades ran later than expected, Hunnam would have to delay production for another film he committed to titled Crimson Peak.
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“All of a sudden, I’m getting all of these wonderful people approaching me and asking me to work with them. It’s very hard to say no when you love and respect people,” he confessed. “I just kind of made a bit of a rookie mistake in that one in biting off more than I could chew.”
Out of all the people Hunnam believes he disappointed, his biggest sadness is directed toward director Sam Taylor-Johnson.
“I absolutely adore her, and I gave her my word,” he shared. “[I] committed to going on this journey with her.”
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Ultimately, the actor was later replaced by fellow Brit Jamie Dornan who will star in the steamy film alongside Dakota Johnson. Despite some NSFW scenes, the pair quickly established chemistry that is clearly evident from the film’s trailer.
“We got ourselves into situations that don’t feel too natural and are not that easy,” Dornan explained on the Today show. “You need to have the trust there.”
Fifty Shades of Grey is scheduled to hit theatres nationwide on Feb. 13, 2015.
(E!, NBC, Universal Pictures and Focus Features are all part of the NBCUniversal family.)
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