'Fifty Shades Darker' movie release date, cast & news update: EL James and director Sam Taylor-Johnson battle it out for creative control

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"Fifty Shades of Grey" author EL James and director Sam Taylor-Johnson battled out their creative differences over the sequel of the original blockbuster movie.

It was announced that James Foley will be replacing Sam Taylor-Johnson as the director for "Fifty Shades Darker." Despite the massive success of the original movie, Taylor-Johnson apparently quit because of the reports that she and "Fifty Shades of Grey" author EL James argued a lot about the direction of the film.

According to the report by the Independent, Taylor-Johnson stated that James was "difficult" and "frustrating" to work with.

"We battled all the way through. She'd say the same. There were tough times and revelatory times. There were sparring contests. It was definitely not an easy process. I kept trying to remind myself that they hired me for a reason," Taylor-Johnson said, according to the report by Movie Pilot. "Some people said to me, 'I'm surprised you haven't quit.' I was like, 'Why would you think I'd quit?' I never quit anything. Not without a fight."

In the same report, the changes made by original screenwriter of the first movie Kelly Marcell were rejected by James as she had "all of the control."

Universal brought in Patrick Marber to do the screenwriting but it was again rejected by James. The two together with Taylor-Johnson has left the franchise.

When Taylor-Johnson left, main star Dakota Johnson who plays Anastasia Steele also voiced out that she was "afraid."

"There was a moment of being afraid, because I didn't know what it was going to be like. I had an experience with Sam [Taylor-Johnson] and then that all went away," Johnson said in the report by Empire Online. However, after finding out that Foley will be the new director, she said: "Now I'm excited. I think James is a talented filmmaker. How often do you get to reconvene with the same people and have a different spin?"

A report by News Everyday reveals that the production and filming for "Fifty Shades Darker" will start next year and that major roles for the second movie have not yet been filled in yet.

"We're nowhere near casting. We haven't gotten into anything like that. We don't even have a casting director on it yet," said Producer Dana Brunetti.

Additionally, he also stated how "insane" casting rumors are by fans. In the same report it was rumored that Henry Cavill will be playing Jack Hyde, Steele's boss. However, when Cavill confirmed that he was not in the movie, the fan casting went on to Ian Somerhalder and Theo James. As for Lincoln, Grey's business partner and the one Steele is jealous of, the role is reportedly going to be played by Charlize Theron. While Williams, who is Grey's former submissive and a main player in the Grey-Steele romance in the second movie, are linked to Alexis Bledel or Cara Delevingne.

"Fifty Shades Darker" will be in theaters on Feb. 10, 2017.