EL James and Fans Approve of Dornan in 'Fifty Shades'

There's been no official announcement yet, but all the sources that suggested that Jamie Dornan would be chosen to play Christian Grey in "Fifty Shades of Grey" seem to have been correct. The unofficial word is that Dornan has the part, and a tweet from the book's author looks like it confirms that a casting decision has been made.

On Thursday, EL James, the author of the fan-fiction-turned-bestseller on which the film is based, tweeted that the book's fans could "stow your twitchy palms…our man is here" and gave a nod to Dornan's Twitter account. The not-quite-announcement ends the speculation over who would fill the gap left by Charlie Hunnam when he dropped out of the project last week.

While the fan reaction to Hunnam's original casting in the role was loud and mostly negative, the reaction to Dornan's casting seems to be much more positive. As the New York Daily News reports, Dornan picked up thousands more followers on Twitter after the news of his casting leaked, and several celebrities, including Lena Dunham and Bret Easton Ellis, expressed their approval, as well.

Now that the film's casting woes seems to have been soothed, the question becomes whether production can stay on schedule. Shooting is scheduled to begin at the start of November, giving Dornan a very short time in which to come up to speed.