Rising screenwriter Kelly Marcel has been hired to adapt 50 Shades of Grey for the screen, Deadline has learned.
Marcel, whose writing credits to date include 20th Century Fox Television’s short lived Terra Nova and the currently in-development Saving Mr. Banks, has been awarded responsibility of bringing E.L. James’ erotically-charged novel to the big screen.
50 Shades of Grey centres on the murky relationship between Anastasia Steele, a college graduate, and Christian Grey, a beautiful and successful, yet emotionally-damaged businessman.
Originally published to overwhelming demand last year, 50 Shades of Grey has since sold over 5 million copies in the U.K. alone and spawned two equally successful sequels.
Universal Pictures and Focus Features acquired the screen rights in March, recruiting The Social Network producers Mike De Luca and Dana Brunetti to oversee production.
Actors such as Ryan Gosling, Matt Bomer, Ian Somerhalder, and Alexander Skarsgård have all since been linked to the film, but no official announcements have been made.
