The Fifty Shades of Grey Movies: What Order to Watch Them
In short: Watch the Fifty Shades films in release order: Fifty Shades of Grey (2015), Fifty Shades Darker (2017) and Fifty Shades Freed (2018). It's one continuous story about Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, with the same two leads throughout, and takes just under six hours. Each film made less money and got worse reviews than the one before.
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- Fifty Shades of Grey (2015, 125 minutes). Anastasia Steele, a literature student, interviews billionaire Christian Grey, and the two start a relationship on his terms.
- Fifty Shades Darker (2017, 118 minutes). Ana and Christian try again, this time with her conditions, while people from his past start appearing.
- Fifty Shades Freed (2018, 105 minutes). The two marry, and a threat from Ana's former boss follows them.
There are no spin-offs or side films to slot in. Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan play the leads in all three, and the whole trilogy takes about 5 hours 50 minutes. All three are rated R in the US for strong sexual content.
How the films did
- Fifty Shades of Grey: $569.7 million worldwide on a $40 million budget, 25% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The Weeknd's "Earned It" was nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Song, and the film also swept the Razzies, including Worst Picture.
- Fifty Shades Darker: $381 million on a $55 million budget, 11% from critics.
- Fifty Shades Freed: $372 million on a $55 million budget, 11% from critics and the lowest audience score of the three.
The pattern is clear: critics never liked the series, but it made over $1.3 billion because readers of the books turned up for every film.
Should you read the books first?
The novels are told in Anastasia's voice, and much of what people liked about them is her running commentary: her doubts, her attraction and her second thoughts about Christian's rules. The films can't carry that inner voice, so they play more like glossy romance with long montages. If you want to understand why the story became a phenomenon, the books explain it better. If you just want the story, the films cover it in under six hours.
E.L. James also retold the trilogy from Christian's side in three later novels: Grey (2015), Darker (2017) and Freed (2021). None of them has been filmed.
Where the story came from
James first wrote the story as Twilight fan fiction, published online as Master of the Universe. She rewrote it as an original novel, and after it spread through e-books and word of mouth, the trilogy was picked up by Vintage in 2012 and became one of the best-selling book series of the decade.
Our verdict
Watch them if you're curious about the phenomenon or enjoyed the books, and go in expecting a soapy romance rather than a good thriller. The first film is the strongest, mostly thanks to Dakota Johnson's dry, self-aware performance. If the first one doesn't work for you, the sequels won't change your mind.
Fifty Shades began as Twilight fan fiction, so the Twilight movies in order make a natural next watch. The Love Hypothesis also started life as fan fiction; here's what to know about the film.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I stream the Fifty Shades films? They move between services, including Netflix and Peacock in recent years, so check what's showing in your country.
Is there a fourth Fifty Shades movie? No. Freed (2018) ends the story, and the later Christian-perspective books haven't been adapted.
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