Producer Floats Idea Of Two Versions Of 'Fifty Shades': One R, One NC-17

Lars von Trier's plan to release hardcore and softcore versions of Nymphomaniac didn't go quite as planned, but now another developing project has glommed onto a similar idea.

Producer Dana Brunetti recently revealed that he hopes to put out two edits of Fifty Shades of Grey: an R-rated one for more general audiences, followed by an NC-17 edit for the more hardcore fans. Hit the jump for more details on his thoughts on how that might work.

The producer spilled his thoughts while chatting with Collider.

It'll be R, obviously it has to be R. This is just my opinion and this doesn't mean this is going to happen, but I always thought it would be really cool if we released the R version and then we had an NC-17 version that we released a few weeks later. So everybody could go and enjoy the R version, and then if they really wanted to see it again and get a little bit more gritty with it then have that NC-17 version out there as well. It'd be great for the studio too because they'd get a double dip on the box office... What we're kind of hearing from the fans is they want it dirty, they want it as close as possible [to the book]. We want to keep it elevated but also give the fans what they want.

As Brunetti is quick to clarify, his wishes aren't the final word. The film has not yet begun shooting, let alone gone before the MPAA, and the studio has made no indication that it plans to release two different theatrical cuts. But all things considered, this seems like a pretty reasonable workaround. And if Fifty Shades manages to pull it off, it could even prove an effective release models for other hard-R films.