At long last, we have a new Christian Grey. And surprisingly enough, I would hit that. What an odd turn of events. After Charlie Hunnam wimped out (yeah, I said it) of Fifty Shades of Grey, the studio had to do a whirlwind casting call to find a replacement. One of the leading contenders turned out to be Irish model/actor Jamie Dornan, and now Dornan has been named your new Christian. Dornan is 31 years old, so he’s the right age for Christian (whom I believe is in his late 20s). Dornan is pretty hot too, and he looks great without clothes. And… that’s all I’ve got. Do 50 Shades fan-girls really need more?

Northern Irish actor Jamie Dornan has been tapped to replace Charlie Hunnam as Christian Grey in the Universal and Focus adaptation of “Fifty Shades of Grey.”

Dornan plays Sheriff Graham Humbert in ABC series “Once Upon a Time”; he’s also played a serial killer in BBC Two crime drama “The Fall,” and he appeared in Sofia Coppola’s “Marie Antoinette.” The 31-year-old thesp performs in an Irish folk duo and has modeled for Calvin Klein, Christian Dior and Armani. His modeling experience may be useful, as the part will require him to act in explicitly sexual scenes.

Dakota Johnson will co-star as Anastasia Steele, with Sam Taylor-Johnson on board to direct. Universal and Focus Features declined to comment.

The project was hit with a huge curveball when Hunnam departed after being attached for just a month. Universal said Hunnam’s exit was due to scheduling issues with “Sons of Anarchy” and upcoming movie “Crimson Peak,” but some sources said battles over a rewrite and the actor’s doubts about the role may have played a part in his decision.

When Hunnam exited, U and Focus execs decided to go for more of a discovery and brought in Dornan and Billy Magnussen to test with Johnson last Friday. Though the studio considered bringing in more actors to test, as of Wednesday morning sources said no one else had been brought in.

Universal will now work quickly to land thesps for the remaining supporting roles that include Steele’s roommate Kate, a role for which U had already been testing actresses prior to Hunnam’s exit.

Michael De Luca is on to produce the adaptation of E.L. James’ sexy bestseller, which is set to bow Aug. 1, 2014.

[From Variety]

Believe it or not, I’m pleased with this choice and I’m relieved that producers chose an actor who is actually sexy to someone like me. As opposed to… you know, the more fan-friendly or twee options. Even though this project should have been cast out of the CW (apologies to Ian Somerhalder once again), I’m glad that they actually chose an actor who seems capable of rough, dirty sex. And yes, I’m not more likely to watch this mess, even though Dakota Johnson still seems like a boring and terrible choice for Anastasia. Blah.

Photos courtesy of WENN, Calvin Klein.