Fifty Shades Of Grey: The Correct Order To Watch & How Closely They Follow The Books
E.L. James' romantic drama "Fifty Shades of Grey" has come a long way since its early days on the internet as "Twilight" fanfiction. The author, who raked in $131 million over a four-year span, is now synonymous with the hit book series, as well as the trilogy of films that were released between 2015 and 2018. For those who didn't jump on the "Fifty Shades" bandwagon back then, or for those who may need a refresher, let's take a look at the correct order to watch the movies, and how closely they follow the books.
Unlike "Star Wars" and other franchises that have prequels and spinoff films that can be viewed in a variety of chronologies depending on preference, the "Fifty Shades" series is pretty straightforward. The right way to watch these films is in the order they were released: "Fifty Shades of Grey," "Fifty Shades Darker" and, finally, "Fifty Shades Freed."
If viewed this way, audiences embark on a journey with Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) as she begins a whirlwind, albeit unorthodox, relationship with Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan), has to grapple with her new man's toxic childhood, and, eventually, embraces her life with the billionaire. And for fans who are concerned about starting the films without having read the books, you will be happy to know that the films are quite faithful to their source material.
The films follow closely to the books, but there are some differences
As a whole, the "Fifty Shades of Grey" movies stay true to the plot of E.L. James' novels. However, as with most based-on-a-book movies, some changes can be seen. A pretty noticeable alteration is the absence of Anastasia Steele's (Dakota Johnson) inner goddess on-screen. In the books, this confident voice in her head compels her to go along with Christian Grey's (Jamie Dornan) lifestyle, and somehow has a mind of its own. According to some fans, this inner monologue is a rather ridiculous addition to the books and could've been left out of those as well.
Another significant change is how Jack Hyde's (Eric Johnson) break-in goes down. In the novel, Ana returns to Escala after a night of fun to see her old boss already captured by Christian's security team. Yet in the movie, Jack is still lurking about and manages to grab her before help can step in. There's also Elliot Grey's (Luke Grimes) proposal to Kate Kavanagh (Eloise Mumford), which takes place at a club on-screen, versus the book's setting of a swanky restaurant. Those Grey men sure know how to treat a lady.