Kim Basinger is in talks to star in the upcoming second movie in the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise, ahead of production starting in the spring.

According to an exclusive in Variety, the 62 year old actress is set to join Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan in Fifty Shades Darker, starring as Christian Grey’s ex-lover and former business partner Elena Lincoln.

Basinger’s rumoured character, who is several years older than the successful businessman Grey, was hinted at in the first movie, setting the stage for a dramatic reveal in the forthcoming film.

Kim BasingerKim Basinger is slated to star as Christian Grey's ex-lover Elena Lincoln in 'Fifty Shades Darker'

James Foley, the director of many episodes of the Netflix drama ‘House of Cards’, has agreed to take over from Sam Taylor-Johnson behind the camera after she had numerous scripting disagreements with E.L. James, the author of the multi-million selling novels.

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At one point, 33 year old Dornan was believed to have threatened to quit the franchise altogether. However, he and his 26 year old co-star Johnson confirmed their involvement in the two remaining movies last year.

Universal is planning to film the two sequels, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, back to back this year, with the first of them slated for a February 10th, 2017 theatrical release. Last year, Fifty Shades of Grey opened to the highest ever box office debut weekend for a February release.

As for Basinger, it’s the third project she’s currently involved with in 2016, having not starred in any movies at all during 2015. She’s filming the darkly humorous ‘mystery thriller’ The Nice Guys with Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, and also the drama Nocturnal Animals alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and Amy Adams.

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