Cold Feet: Charlie Hunnam Drops Out of 'Fifty Shades of Grey'

Charlie Hunnam has no problem with motorcycle gangs or battling kaiju, but apparently a little bit of S&M scares him. On Saturday, Universal Pictures announced that Hunnam had dropped out of the much-anticipated Fifty Shades of Grey adaption. From the studio's statement:

"The filmmakers of Fifty Shades of Grey and Charlie Hunnam have agreed to find another male lead given Hunnam’s immersive TV schedule which is not allowing him time to adequately prepare for the role of Christian Grey."

While Universal and Hunnam's camp are citing the actor's busy schedule, The Hollywood Reporter's sources say that the Sons of Anarchy and Pacific Rim star actually got cold feet.

Two sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Hunnam, 33, was overwhelmed with the attention he received from being cast in the movie and got cold feet about carrying such a high-profile project. Universal was forced to hire bodyguards for the actor at a recent Sons of Anarchy premiere, where questions about Fifty Shades dominated the red carpet. 

The sources caution that Hunnam had no reservation about the role of Christian Grey, just the media and fan frenzy that came along with it, especially as he was transitioning from Sons to Fifty Shades so quickly.

OK, OK, so I guess Hunnam wasn't afraid of the raunchier side of Fifty Shades of Grey. His departure possibly puts Universal and director Sam Taylor-Johnson in danger of missing the film's targeted Aug. 1, 2014, released date though. Maybe it's for the best, as that date has also been claimed by Marvel for Guardians of the Galaxy. I'm not sure how much overlap there would be between these two films, but if the studios could avoid an opening weekend clash, I'm sure they'd be happier.