The actor best known for his role Cesare Borgia on the Showtime drama series has reportedly been approached to replace Charlie Hunnam in the Sam Taylor-Wood directed pic.
- Oct 17, 2013
AceShowbiz - Francois Arnaud is the latest actor rumored as Charlie Hunnam's replacement in "Fifty Shades of Grey". According to Just Jared, the 28-year-old Canadian actor has been approached to take on the role of Christian Grey, but no formal offer has been made.
Universal and Focus Features are rushing to find a new male lead, after Hunnam abruptly left. A recent rumor suggested he clashed with the producers over script issues, and earlier report said he got cold feet over the overwhelming attention he received from the film.
The "Pacific Rim" star was initially set to play Christian Grey opposite Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele. Their casting was met with backlash, and Johnson was recently said feeling the pressure as well. Rumor has it, he was to get only $125,000 for the role.
An adaptation of E.L. James' erotic book of the same title, "Fifty Shades of Grey" is expected to kick off production this coming November for a planned August 1, 2014 release. Sam Taylor-Wood is on board to direct the pic about a D/S relationship between young wealthy businessman Grey and naive college student Steele.
Arnaud joins "True Blood" hunk Alexander Skarsgard and "The Fall" star Jamie Dornan as potential candidates, along with "Divergent" actor Theo James and "Magic City" star Christian Cooke who initially lost the role to the "Sons of Anarchy" actor.
Arnaud was last seen in Ron Maxwell-directed indie drama "Copperhead" coming out this summer. He will conclude playing Cesare Borgia, the son of Pope Alexander VI (Jeremy Irons), in the last season of Showtime's historical-fiction series "The Borgias" this year.
