Not long after the first three Fifty Shades books became a global craze, major film studios began the bidding war to secure movie rights for them. Universal Pictures emerged the winner and the trilogy certainly proved a great investment as the films went on to collectively gross over a billion dollars at the box office.
Even if you’ve never read the books, the immense popularity of the erotic drama series became a worldwide phenomenon. It started with Fifty Shades of Grey, with the two sequels quickly following in its success. By 2017, the original books by E. L. James had been retold from Christian Grey’s POV, and interest in them was revived all over again. With rumors of further films and spin-offs seemingly always in the air, it’s never a bad time to catch up on these titillating films, or relive the raunchy magic they created all over again.
Whether you’re thinking of watching the films for the first or fiftieth time, here’s a cast and character guide for the memorable characters from the Fifty Shades of Grey films, and the talented stars who dared to play them.
Dakota Johnson as Anastasia “Ana” Steele
Johnson in Fifty Shades DarkerUniversal Pictures
Anastasia Steele (later Grey), who’s better known as “Ana” in the films, is quiet and a relatively sheltered student with a penchant for British literature. She’s very intelligent, focused on her goals, and works hard. Though she’s naturally beautiful, she doesn’t think of herself in this way and can be a little self-conscious about her looks.
Her quiet, normal life changes when she happens across Christian Grey, a famous billionaire who runs a vast empire, and is desired by women everywhere, but ultimately keeps his private life shrouded in mystery. Taken by her, Christian and Ana begin dating, underpinned by an unorthodox sadomasochistic sexual relationship that she mostly enjoys, but that sometimes also leads to tumultuous moments between them. While the pair grow to love each other a lot, Christian’s mysterious and domineering nature (that extends beyond his famous red room), can be difficult to handle as Ana sometimes yearns for moments of normalcy.
Ana is played by the beautiful Dakota Johnson. Johnson is the daughter of fellow actors, Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith. While Dakota began her film career in 1999 and appeared in films like The Social Network and 21 Jump Street, it was her role as Ana Steele that catapulted her to global stardom.
Since her fame from the trilogy, she’s been in films like Netflix’s Wounds, and will soon be joining the Spiderverse as the title character in Marvel’s upcoming film, Madame Web.
Jamie Dornan as Christian Grey
Dornan in Fifty Shades DarkerUniversal Pictures
Christian Grey is the titillating male lead character from the films. A billionaire who runs a vast empire, his public image is that of a young, handsome, and successful businessman. However, Grey has a traumatic past that slowly unravels over time. In private, he has a dark side and secretly practices extreme versions of BDSM. He meets and falls for Ana, inducting her into his sexually enticing lifestyle, but ultimately falling in love with her too — something that helps soften his character a lot.
Christian is played by Jamie Dornan, a Northern Irish actor, musician, and model. Dornan was a successful model for major fashion labels such as Hugo Boss and Armani. His film career began in 2006 with a role in Marie Antoinette. After playing Christian Grey, he became one of the most desired men in the world.
He’s since gone on to star in films like The Seige of Jadotville and Robin Hood, and most recently starred in the spy thriller, Heart of Stone alongside Gal Gadot. He’s a multi-award-winning actor, mostly for his role in the critically acclaimed show, Belfast.
Eloise Mumford as Katherine “Kate” Kavanaugh
Mumford in Fifty Shades FreedUniversal Pictures
Kate is the best friend and roommate of Ana, who has always been a little more sexually adventurous than her until Ana meets Christian. The pair get along well, and Kate is usually Ana’s go-to person for advice and a confidante. While out celebrating the end of finals together one night, Kate meets and starts dating Elliot Grey, who is Christian Grey’s brother.
