Jamie Dornan Went To Great Lengths To Avoid Fifty Shades Of Grey Ridicule

It's been a while since Jamie Dornan wrapped up the "Fifty Shades" film franchise. The final installment, "Fifty Shades Freed," hit theaters in 2018. Years later, the actor still recalls all the negativity he was forced to weather, such as literally hiding from the scathing reviews that poured in for both the first film and his leading performance as reclusive, damaged billionaire Christian Grey.

During an interview on the BBC podcast "Desert Island Discs," Dornan said he and his wife Amelia Warner ran from public life in the wake of "Fifty Shades of Grey," the first movie released in 2015. "I think I hid," he revealed. "I am coming off the back of career altering reviews for [his serial killer drama] 'The Fall' to just ridicule, almost." Apparently, "Fifty Shades of Grey" director Sam Taylor-Johnson and her husband Aaron Taylor-Johnson lent a hand in the form of their secluded home. "They let us have their place in the country and we sort of hid there for a while and just shut ourselves from the world a bit and then sort of came out the other side," Dornan said.

Even with all of that, Dornan said that all of a sudden, he realized the first film had spawned a franchise of which he'd be a major part: "It [the film] made so much money that two or three were like greenlit overnight. It was a strange thing, because then you are like, there is a bit of ridicule here and I'm now contractually doing two more of them and knowing that there would be more of that damnation to come."

Even when you consider that he physically removed himself from society and referred to the sequels as "damnation to come," Jamie Dornan did open up about whether or not he wishes he'd never done the "Fifty Shades" movies at all, and the answer might be somewhat surprising. He did say that he still feels like reviews of projects he's done since playing Christian Grey feel like they have to mention the franchise. "I have just had very glowing reviews for recent work and there wouldn't be many of them that don't mention 'Fifty Shades' in them," Dornan admitted. "A lot of reviews are like, 'He's great, but lest we forget when he wasn't great...'" Does he truly regret appearing in the movies, though? He does not; as he put it, "But regrets that I did them, no."

Dornan's co-star, Dakota Johnson, has also addressed the fact that while the "Fifty Shades" movies will follow her everywhere, she doesn't fully regret them because they did give her career quite a boost. In 2021, Johnson was asked if she regretted the movies, and answered thusly: "[The regret] comes in waves. But this project 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."

Jamie Dornan has stayed booked and busy since playing Christian Grey, and he's made a point of picking wildly diverse roles that really show off his range. The actor mentioned his crime drama "The Fall" during his BBC interview, where he plays dangerous serial killer Paul Spector — who's being hunted by police officer Stella Gibson (Gillian Anderson) — and is truly terrifying. After "Fifty Shades," Dornan continued to branch out.

Shortly after "Fifty Shades Freed," Dornan appeared alongside Rosamund Pike in the 2018 film "A Private War" as real-life photographer Paul Conroy. In 2020, the actor lent his voice to "Trolls World Tour" and star in the truly absurd dramedy "Wild Mountain Thyme" with Emily Blunt, and in 2021, he showed up in two radically different films. First, he played a pivotal supporting role in the delightfully ridiculous comedy "Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar," which is led by (and written by) Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo. (Dornan plays Edgar Pagét, love interest to Wiig's Star and, somehow, her other character Sharon Fisherman). Then, Dornan played "Pa" in Kenneth Branagh's Oscar nominated "Belfast" with "Outlander's" Caitríona Balfe as his wife. The films might be quite different, but it's important to note Dornan dances beautifully in both.

From 2022 to 2024, Dornan starred in and produced the Max original series "The Tourist," and in 2023, he appeared in the ensemble of Branagh's Hercule Poirot film "A Haunting in Venice."