Dakota Johnson Feared Her Parents Would Ruin Her ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Casting With Their ‘Big Mouths’
Actor Dakota Johnson landed perhaps her biggest role when she was cast in Fifty Shades of Grey. But she was concerned that her parents might reveal the big news too early.
Dakota Johnson wanted to keep her ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ role a secret from her parents
At the time, Johnson was eager to be cast in Fifty Shades of Grey. She felt passionate about the film’s source material, which connected with her in the same way it connected with millions of readers.
“I just really understand it,” Johnson once told Entertainment Weekly. “I think it’s an incredible love story and that’s why it’s affected so many people. Erica [EL James] did a really good job of explaining how that just can happen sometimes and you have this chemical pull to someone. Adding in the sex makes it perfect. Sometimes you feel a little bit naughty and that’s okay.”
She won the role through a traditional audition process. When she received the call that the movie was hers to star in, Johnson only had her pet to celebrate with.
“I was just crying, and there were all these dogs in the house. This one dog was below my feet sleeping, and I was like, ‘You f***er, wake up, this is really exciting’ – and then I had a glass of whiskey,” Johnson said.
But the actor didn’t give the news to her famous parents, who she felt would’ve let the secret slip a bit too early.
“Sometimes your parents are the ones with the biggest mouths of all time,” she once told Elle (via Contact Music).
Dakota Johnson called making ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ a battle
Not too long ago, Johnson opened up about what it was really like starring in Fifty Shades. She expressed a bit of disappointment with how the film series turned out. Especially since it looked completely different from what it was when she was initially cast.
“I signed up to do a very different version of the film we ended up making,” Johnson told Vanity Fair not too long ago.
She confided that disagreements between the book’s author and the film crew resulted in a chaotic environment behind-the-scenes.
“[E.L. James] had a lot of creative control, all day, every day, and she just demanded that certain things happen. There were parts of the books that just wouldn’t work in a movie, like the inner monologue, which was at times incredibly cheesy,” she said. “It wouldn’t work to say out loud. It was always a battle. Always. When I auditioned for that movie, I read a monologue from Persona and I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be really special.’”
But despite some of the controversies, both Johnson and her co-star Jamie Dornan appreciated being a part of the mega-franchise.
“If I had known at the time that’s what it was going to be like, I don’t think anyone would’ve done it,” Johnson said. “It would’ve been like, ‘Oh, this is psychotic.’ But no, I don’t regret it,” she said.
Dakota Johnson didn’t like being judged for ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’
Apart from the behind-the-scenes issues, Johnson also wasn’t a fan of some of the scrutiny she faced in the role.
“People feeling the need not only to judge everyone all the time but also to pronounce themselves on it, it’s extremely boring,” she once told Vogue (via Refinery). “A waste of energy and time.”
The successful film trilogy may have been one of Johnson’s career highlights. But the actor was also determined to make sure it wasn’t the only one.
“[The Fifty Shades franchise] is not going to be my swan song. It has put my life on a path that I didn’t plan to go down, but I do feel proud of it. And the films have allowed me to do so many different projects and travel so much. In the end, Fifty Shades has plopped me in a world that I really wanted to be in,” she added.
