'Fifty Shades Of Grey' Adaptation Moves Forward: Mike De Luca And Dana Brunetti Set To Produce

In a recent interview, Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L James revealed that the supposedly 'fast-tracked' film adaptation of her erotic love story has been progressing sluggishly.

Things are moving quite slowly on that but hopefully... after we've put a few things in place it will all start to move on, James told Red Carpet TV. We've still got to get the producers in place then deal with the script and all that. The actual film is a long way down the line.

That certainly seems to be turning around. It was announced on Monday that the highly anticipated film has brought on two notable producers, Mike De Luca and Dana Brunetti. De Luca's previous films include The Social Network and Moneyball, (which Brunetti also produced) were both financially successful and critically acclaimed, which sets the bar high for Fifty Shades.

Universal Pictures, which is owned by General Electric Company (GE), won the rights to the bestselling erotic story after a bidding war that included heavy-hitters such top notch studios as Sony Pictures (SNE) and Warner Brothers (TWX). James settled on Universal's pitch and $5 million offering because they agreed to involve her in the development process, including casting.

The studios co-chairmen, Donna Langley, expressed her belief that De Luca and Brunetti are an excellent addiction to the project.

At its core, 'Fifty Shades of Grey' is a complex love story, requiring a delicate and sophisticated hand to bring it to the big screen, Langley said. Mike and Dana's credits more than exemplify what we need in creative partners and we're glad to have them as part of our team.

No director, screenwriter, or cast has been put into place as of yet. Countless internet polls and discussion boards have aimed to find out who should play the coveted lead roles of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey. Though the studio has yet to confirm possible actors and actresses for the roles, James has an idea of who she'd like to portray the S&M loving couple.

I have about four people in mind for Ana and three for Christian but I'm not telling anyone what they are because I'm not allowed to discuss the movie at all which is a real shame, said James.

Looks like fans will have to wait for an official announcement.

Fifty Shades of Grey centers on a naïve college senior, Anastasia, and an enigmatic billionaire, Christian. After interviewing Christian for the school paper, Anastasia agrees to be his submissive, meaning he can exercise physical control over her. The two become embroiled in a string of passionate trysts and emotional tribulations before they must confront the true nature of their relationship.

The Fifty Shades craze has swept the nation since the first installment was published in June of 2011. All three books (Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed round out the trilogy) have climbed to the top of the New York Times bestseller list. A whopping 20 million copies have been sold so far.