Fifty Shades of Grey fans petition for a new cast

This Monday, Sons of Anarchy actor Charlie Hunnam and relative unknown Dakota Johnson landed the roles of Christian Grey and Anastasia in the film adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey. And fans of the erotic novel were fifty shades of annoyed.Outraged fans have already launched a petition on Change.org, which has notched up 18,000 signatures in two days.[caption id="attachment_1084683" align="alignleft" width="380"] The Fifty Shades of Grey book.[/caption]Below is the slightly hysterical appeal featured on the petition:

Matt Bomer is the PERFECT DESCRIPTION OF CHRISTIAN GREY AND ALEXIS BLEDEL IS THE PERFECT ACTRESS TO REPRESENT ANASTASIA STEELE and if THEY ARE NOT, NOBODY WILL BE And I read the whole trilogy and I can assure that Matt is the perfect actor for this movie and Alexis too. So please PLEASE, all of the GREYsessed and Bomerettes in the world NEED those actors. They always will be for us the Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele. WE CAN DO ANYTHING GUYS, ANYTHING.

Below are some of the fans who managed to fit their outrage into tweets:

So disappointed in the characters picked for 50 shades of Grey. #notwatchinganymore pic.twitter.com/FfFJH7lCzw — Daniya Attal (@ddattal) September 4, 2013

 

When I heard about the cast of 50 Shades of Grey..... :( pic.twitter.com/CNverp5RSP — Miss Somerhalder :) (@XimeCM_ISF) September 2, 2013

 

The casts for 50 shades of grey is a big NO. I want matt bomer to be christian — Angie ♛ (@is0fly) September 4, 2013

 

In still upset at the 50 shades of grey casting — (@primad0nnagirl) September 4, 2013

Fan outrage about the creative liberties taken with a beloved book-turned-movie are nothing new. It can be mapped all the way back to Breakfast At Tiffany’s, when author Truman Capote was at the forefront of the movement declaring Marilyn Monroe to be the true Holly Golightly, not the demure Audrey Hepburn. Now, decades later, Hepburn’s performance as the flighty Holly is a classic one.Take the example of Twilight. It’s hard to believe now, but when Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were cast as sparkly vampire and expressionless zombie respectively, fans were not pleased. And now, the duo has what can only be described as cult status in the Twilight fandom. Why do fans, despite learning over and over again that they don’t know best, continue to fight casting decisions? Producer Dana Brunetti also took to Twitter to defend the casting decision:

There is a lot that goes into casting that isn't just looks. Talent, availability, their desire to do it, chemistry with other actor, etc. — Dana Brunetti (@DanaBrunetti) September 2, 2013

 

So if your favorite wasn't cast, then it is most likely due to something on that list. Keep that in mind while hating and keep perspective. — Dana Brunetti (@DanaBrunetti) September 2, 2013

The truth of the matter is that negative fan reactions make little to no difference to the eventual success of the movie. Firstly, as much as that petitioner would like to believe otherwise, a Hollywood movie will not be recast because of what the internet says. On the other hand, it’s possible that this sort of backlash bodes well for the movie – it shows that people care, which is enough support to fill up cinema seats.Secondly, it sets expectations to a low. Now if Charlie Hunman and Dakota Johnson can approximate anything close to chemistry, fans will be pleasantly surprised. Thirdly, it’s an inevitable reaction when a book is adapted into a movie. We all read different versions of the same book. The characters look different in our minds, and we adapt each one to our own fantasy – something which couldn’t be truer about the, ahem, intimate storyline of 50 Shades of Grey.Fans feel proprietary about the book, and it’s a very natural reaction. But as fans, we are still caring about someone else’s creative vision, not our own. It’s something the 50 Shades of Grey fandom would do well to remember.