Fifty Shades of Grey (film) James' husband, Niall Leonard, was enlisted to write the script for the film's sequel. In the same month, at the 2015 Universal CinemaCon in Las Vegas, Universal announced the release dates of the sequels, with "Fifty Shades Darker" being released on February 10, 2017, and "Fifty Shades Freed" was released on February 9, 2018. However, the sequels did not see Sam Taylor-Johnson returning as director. On August 20, 2015, the U.S. "House of Cards" director James Foley was a frontrunner to direct the sequel. In November 2015, Universal Studios announced that both films will be shot back-to-back. A spoof version
Fifty Shades of Grey (film) the contract, and in an effort to understand Christian psychologically, Ana asks him to demonstrate how he would "punish" her for rule breaking. Christian whips Ana's buttocks with a belt. Upset and disgusted, Ana breaks up with Christian after concluding that he is wrong for her and his practices border on being deviant and excessive. By early 2013, several Hollywood studios were keen to obtain film rights to "The New York Times" bestselling "Fifty Shades" trilogy of novels. Warner Bros., Sony, Paramount, Universal, and Mark Wahlberg's production company submitted bids for the film rights. Universal Pictures and Focus Features secured