Jamie Dornan is opening up about how he handles pressure from fans and reveals a “scary” experience he had with a stalker.
After starring in the wildly popular Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, based on E.L. James’ novels, the actor found himself at the center of the fandom, including fan-created conspiracies about him and his co-star Dakota Johnson.
Dornan recently told The Independent that he “tried to put walls up around [the fans], to really try and not let that in.”
“I’m pretty good at just blocking any of the noise associated with whatever fandom is – not letting it affect me, or more importantly my family,” added The Tourist actor, who has three daughters with his wife Amelia Warner.
But Dornan revealed that he has also been in some frightening situations that have impacted his family.
“I had a situation… a stalker-type situation before Covid,” he recalled. “That was fucking scary. Someone turned up at my house when my kids were there. … The more I can block that out, the better it is for me and the family.”
Following the attention he got from the Fifty Shades of Grey films, Dornan now knows he prefers a balance when it comes to taking on high-profile projects, one where he can still have somewhat of a “normal life.”
“There’s never going to be anything like Fifty Shades again,” The Fall actor told the outlet. “It felt very much like its own thing, particularly because it focused in and around sex. But there are obviously other jobs that bring insane scrutiny, like superhero stuff, or fucking James Bond – any of that stuff. I’ve done pretty well to avoid that sort of shit so far.”
Dornan added, “I’m not saying I’d never do anything super high-profile again, or a big [intellectual property] with all eyes on it… I probably will. But I’m also really happy with where I’m at right now. I can live a pretty normal life for the most part. I can sit on the Tube and I’m fine. I’m an ambitious person, and I have a fire under me, but in the last 10 years or so, I’ve realized I don’t want big peaks all the time. That doesn’t interest me. I’m happy to keep ticking over as I am, then one day just disappear and play golf for the rest of my life.”
