Charlie Hunnam Still Traumatized After "Fifty Shades of Grey" Casting Before Jamie Dornan

Even before Jamie Dornan came into the public consciousness as Christian Grey in “Fifty Shades of Grey,” Charlie Hunnam was initially tapped to play him. His casting created quite a buzz in social media, with people saying that the actor is perfect for the role of the suave billionaire who swept Anastasia Steele off her feet. Hunnam had to drop out of the role, however, due to scheduling conflicts and the part went to Dornan instead.

When Charlie Hunnam was cast as Christian Grey in 2013, he was still working on season 7 of the “Sons of Anarchy.” What people didn’t know was the actor had signed on to do Guillermo del Toro’s gothic romance “Crimson Peak” as well. The movie was shooting around the same time as “Fifty Shades of Grey” according to Vanity Fair.

Charlie Hunnam tried hard to work “Fifty Shades of Grey” into his already tight schedule even coming up with different flight plans to and from the different filming locations. The actor eventually gave up the movie and he recalled people around him could not believe he chose to do the del Toro movie over the potential box-office hit. But, Hunnam knew he could not back out of his word to his friend del Toro.

Charlie Hunnam revealed that he has not watched “Fifty Shades of Grey” because it reminds him of a chaotic time in his career reported Variety. He added that it was a traumatic experience for him and he doesn’t want to open the wound again. Despite everything, Hunnam has nothing but praises for Dornan, who he described as a lot better looking and a lot smoother than him. But, he conceded that he would have brought a certain rugged charm to Christian Grey himself, for which fans would surely agree.

Looking back, it would have been an extremely difficult role to play for Charlie Hunnam as he is said to be a germophobe since his early childhood. He revealed that he struggles doing intimate scenes. The actor added that the only person he will ever kiss is his girlfriend. And, to compensate on what his fans have missed out on his backing off “Fifty Shades of Grey,” he said he will allow his audition tape to be included as a DVD extra.