It's been over a year and a half since moviegoers saw Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey's sexual escapades told on the big screen, and now Universal is getting us prepped for the Fifty Shades of Grey sequel. Fifty Shades Darker's first trailer dropped this past Tuesday at 8 a.m. PST, and as expected, it was full of steaminess and erotic imagery. What many folks probably didn't predict is that it would become the most watched trailer within a 24-hour period.
The Fifty Shades Darker was viewed 114 million times across YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and various other platforms over that first 24 hours, according to THR. Until now, Star Wars: The Force Awakens' second full-length trailer (released in October 2015) held the record with 112 million views, but now the latest Fifty Shades installment has taken the #1 spot. Within the first hour of release, the Fifty Shades Darker preview accumulated 2.5 million views just on the movie's Facebook page. Only 39 million of those views came from North America, as it was other countries (like Mexico and France) that accumulated a combined 74.6 million views.
Fifty Shades Darker may not have come to mind at first as the movie whose trailer would knock Star Wars: The Force Awakens off its perch, but when you think about it, it has a lot of support backing it across the globe. First off, this movie series already has an existing fanbase of people who read the trilogy of books written by E.L. James. On top of that, the first movie took the world by storm last year. Critically, Fifty Shades of Grey didn't fare well, but it was a box office powerhouse, taking in over $570 million worldwide on a $40 million budget and breaking several records at the time, including the highest February opening weekend and Universal's highest-grossing R-rated film overseas. This series may not have the same pop culture pull as juggernauts like Star Wars or Marvel movies, but the Fifty Shades Darker fans and those simply curious about what's in store for the sequel proved that Fifty Shades Darker has a lot of pull. If you haven't already, check out the trailer for yourself below.
Anastasia and Christian broke up at the end of Fifty Shades of Grey, but Fifty Shades Darker will see the couple getting back together, only this time on Anastasia's terms. However, as this new relationship progresses, Christian's past will come to haunt them and threaten to separate them again. Along with Dakota Steele and Jamie Dornan reprising the main characters, the sequel's cast includes Kim Basinger, Luke Grimes, Eloise Mumford, Eric Johnson and Marcia Gay Harden.
Fifty Shades Darker hits theaters on February 10, 2017.
