‘Fifty Shades Darker’ Ready To Add Ian Somerhalder To Play Jack Hyde?

After a long wait, Fifty Shades Darker is finally getting ready to start production. However, there are still a number of important roles to fill. While the Fifty Shades of Grey sequel has cast the part of Elena Lincoln, the role of Jack Hyde remains up in the air. With that in mind, are producers eyeing Ian Somerhalder to take on the role?

According to Movie Pilot, Kim Basinger has been tapped to play the part of Lincoln. This casting news ends a months-long debate on which actress would be best suited for the part. Although Basinger was not on most people’s list for the role, the actress is actually a pretty promising addition to the movie.

Basinger’s last box office hit was 8 Mile, which premiere in 2002. However, her most popular character was in LA Confidential, in which she played the seductive part of Lynn. Considering the nature of her role in Fifty Shades Darker, Basinger’s past experience makes her a perfect fit.

In the books, Lincoln is introduced as Christian Grey’s (Jamie Dornan) past BDSM teacher and new partner in business. In the movie, Lincoln is expected to be an obstacle in Christian’s relationship with Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson), who is dealing with her own set of problems.

Speaking of Ana and her problems, her boss, Jack Hyde, is set to be the source of a lot of her issues in the sequel. With Hyde set to play the villain in the film, Somerhalder is thought to be at the top of the list of candidates for the part.

Somerhalder is best known for his role as a vampire in the hit television series, The Vampire Diaries. While Somerhalder can no doubt capture the seductive qualities of Jack, the biggest question surrounds his ability to be menacing. With production for the move expected to begin in a few weeks, it won’t be long before fans discover if Somerhalder has been picked or not.

Meanwhile, in addition to the casting news, fans can expect the film to be a lot darker than the first. In fact, in an interview with Access Hollywood, Johnson revealed that the film is similar in tone to a thriller and that the plot gets dark.

“We’re gonna start filming that soon… I think it’s gonna be exciting… to go back and develop characters further. The story is sort of like a thriller now. And it gets kinda scary. It’s awesome,” she shared.

According to Movie Pilot, part of this scarier tone centers on the role of Jack Hyde and partly around director James Foley. The director is taking over the reins from Sam Taylor-Johnson, who helmed the first movie. Considering Foley’s past works, which include House of Cards and Hannibal, there is little doubt why the movie will be drastically different than Fifty Shades of Grey.

At the same time, there is still another role in the film that has yet to be cast: Leila Williams. With that in mind, Movie News Guide is reporting that Lucy Hale and Kendall Jenner are two of the top candidates for the role.

Williams is the ex-submissive of Christian, who is set to stir up trouble between Christian and Ana. Given the characteristics of the role, both women would be a good fit for the part, with Hale having a slight advantage due to her past acting credits. At this point, producers have to offer any hints as to who they are considering for the role.

Fifty Shades Darker is set to premiere on February 10, 2017, while Fifty Shades Freed is scheduled to open a year later.

Tell us! Do you want Ian Somerhalder to play Jack Hyde in Fifty Shades Darker? Let us know in the comments below.

[Image via The CW]