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FIFTY SHADES SUCCESS DID NOTHING FOR ITS DIRECTOR
Filmmaker Sam TaylorJohnson says that she was offered “nothing” after directing Fifty Shades of Grey, based on the bestselling book of the same name.
In an interview to IndieWire, Sam opened up about how Fifty Shades of Grey, despite being a success, stunted her career in cinema. The 51-year-old filmmaker and photographer, who is married to actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson, 28, believed that she’d be a hot commodity after taking on the screen adaptation of the book by E.L. James. There was good reason to believe so — the first instalment of the Fifty Shades trilogy, starring Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson, proved to be a box office smash, raking in $570 million worldwide in 2015.
Sam said, “You would be surprised at how... no, you would not be surprised, sadly. Nothing. I literally was scrambling still, in exactly the same position I was prior to that [film]. I would say to my agent, ‘I love this book. I really love it. What is the deal with it?’ They are going to [directors] Steven, Steven, David, David, and John.’ But I know I’m fully capable.” She is at the helm of another film adaptation of a book, James Frey’s A Million Little Pieces, which she has shown at the ongoing Toronto International Film Festival and explained that she had to fight to direct this film.
“It drives me crazy, not just for myself, because I have all that experience and I’m pretty ballsy, I can punch through doors when they’ve slammed in my face. But I still want to weep at the sense of inequality,” said the filmmaker.
I was scrambling still, in exactly the same position I was prior to that [film]. I’d say to my agent, ‘I love this book. What is the deal with it?’ They are going to [directors] Steven, David, and John.’ But I know I’m fully capable.
SAM TAYLORJOHNSON FILMMAKER