Jamie Dornan has admitted he found the wave of criticism levelled at the Fifty Shades Of Grey franchise “fucking difficult” to deal with.
The Northern Irish actor is currently gearing up for the release of Belfast, which has already been tipped as a favourite for next year’s Oscars, though his past projects haven’t always been so well received.
He previously took the lead as Christian Grey in the big-screen adaptation of the Fifty Shades erotic novel trilogy, all three of which were torn apart by critics.
During a live-chat with GQ ahead of Belfast’s release, he reflected on his Fifty Shades experience, stating: “There’s nothing like Fifty Shades in terms of, it was based on books and we were staying very close to these books.
“These books were loved by fandom. Really loved, obsessively loved and despised by every critic. Real critics hated the books.”
He continued: “You know that you’re going to have these movies that are for the fans, that the fans are going to love, that are gonna make a ton of money. But you know that the critics will be just, you know, licking their lips and that’s exactly what happened.
“And we knew that was going to happen so you’re watching that play out and at times that’s fucking difficult.”
Last month, Jamie defended the Fifty Shades franchise, insisting it wasn’t something he was comfortable being treated as a “joke”.
“It’s done no harm to my career to be part of a movie franchise that has made more than one billion dollars,” he said. “Every working actor would say the same thing. It’s provided – a lot.
“There’s no shame in saying it’s transformed my life and my family’s life financially. I am very, very grateful for this and always will be. And the fans loved it.”
He added: “I take issue with the whole thing being just a bit of a joke. Everyone involved worked as hard as they could on those films, including myself.”