‘Fifty Shades Darker’ To Film In Paris, Jamie Dornan And Dakota Johnson ‘Thriller’ To Film In The City Of Lights After Terror Attacks

With production for Fifty Shades Darker set to begin in the coming months, producers are targeting Paris as one of the movie’s filming locations. This decision follows the terrorist attacks that shook the country back in November. Despite the fallout from the attacks, the cast crew of Fifty Shades Darker are committed to filming in the city of lights at some point this year.

The decision to film in Paris is part of a larger initiative to support the city on behalf of the movie industry. In speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Stephane Martinet, director of the Paris regional film commission, explained that U.S. producers “want to send a message” by filming in the famed city.

“It seems there is some sort of resilience among the film industry. Producers, in particular from the U.S., voiced their support to us after the attacks and reinforced their willingness to pursue their projects,” he stated in the interview. “They want to send a message.”

As part of a liaison for Film France, Melanie Chebance added that filming was ground to a halt after the week following the attacks. However, things have since returned to normal, albeit with an added level of security.

In fact, there are still some restrictions on when and where filmmakers can shoot within the city. According to an unnamed police officer, this includes embassies and famous monuments like the Eiffel Tower.

“For example, a scene in front of a bank would not be possible, or shooting with guns,” the policeman shared. “We would have to do an analysis of the scene, and fake guns could be used, but no sounds. [Gunshot] sounds would have to be done in a studio, because the noise might scare people.”

Meanwhile, with production for Fifty Shades Darker expected to start any time now, it isn’t clear how these restrictions will impact the sequel, which is expected to take on a thriller vibe. In fact, in an interview with Access Hollywood, Dakota Johnson talked about the tone of the sequel and revealed that it would much darker and scarier than the first.

“The story is sort of like a thriller now, and it gets kind of scary… it’s awesome. [The sex scenes] involve a lot of specific movement, choreography, which is really interesting to me… It doesn’t ever get easy. It’s not like I’m like, ‘Let’s do this!” she explained.

Part of this thriller tone is due to the introduction of a few new characters to the storyline. According to Movie Pilot, this includes Jack Hyde, Leila Williams, and Elena Lincoln. That being said, apart from Lincoln, it still isn’t known who will play Jack, the main villain in the film, and Leila, Christian Grey’s (Jamie Dornan) former submissive.

As of now, there are a number of interesting candidates that are thought to be up for the role of Hyde. This includes the likes of Ian Somerhalder and Cillian Murphy, though neither actor has confirmed their interest in the part.

However, The Stir is reporting that Kim Basinger has been cast for the part of Elena Lincoln. In the books, Lincoln is Christian’s former BDSM teacher who was his first dominate. Considering Basinger’s addition to the movie and the fact that the filming will take place in Paris, fans are certainly in for quite a thrill ride when Fifty Shades Darker hits theaters next year.

While fans wait for more casting news to surface, Fifty Shades Darker is scheduled to be released in February of 2017, while Fifty Shades Freed is set for a February 2018 release date. Both films are directed by James Foley.

Tell us! Are you surprised that Fifty Shades Darker chose to film on location in Paris? Let us know in the comments below.

[Image via Universal]