Production is currently underway for the next "50 Shades of Grey" film, and with filming prepared to begin in early 2016, it was decided that the next two installments, "Fifty Shades Darker" and "Fifty Shades Freed," will be shot back-to-back, according to Variety.
It was not said why the decision was made by Universal to shoot the two films in unison, but it usually helps keep costs down, reported IndieWire.
The "Fifty Shades" book series took the world by storm a couple of years ago and was turned into a film franchise. The first film, "Fifty Shades of Grey," grossed more than $560 million worldwide. Jamie Doran and Dakota Johnson are both set to return to the trilogy as Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele, according to MTV.
Niall Leonard, the husband of the "Fifty Shades" trilogy author E.L. James, wrote both screenplays, while Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti are back as producers alongside author James. "House of Cards" director James Foley is set to take on both films, with "Fifty Shades Darker" set to arrive on Feb. 10, 2017 and "Fifty Shades Freed" to arrive on Feb. 9, 2018. The pattern of release has both films coming out right around Valentine's Day, just like the first film.
