Fifty Shades of Grey, the highly anticipated movie adaptation of E.L. James's mega-bestselling novel, debuts today in theaters nationwide, including 75 large-screen venues because "it's something I think we have to do" in order to "increase our bandwidth," according to IMAX Entertainment CEO Greg Foster. In addition, plans are already underway for sequels based on Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed.
While booksellers may experience an uptick in sales of the novels, other retailers are also expected to benefit. (Have you seen the Fifty Shades of Grey Teddy Bear? And Buzzfeed gathered "13 of the least sexy Fifty Shades of Grey inspired items for sale.)
Earlier this week, the Telegraph featured a leaked memo circulated among the 20,887 employees at 359 B&Q home improvement stores, advising them "to read Fifty Shades of Grey and prepare for a massive rise in demand for rope, cable ties and tape."
In a plot twist worthy of Hollywood, however, ITV reported that B&Q admitted yesterday the memo, released by the company's "naughty PR team," was just "a bit of fun. Both B&Q, the public and the media have been entertained over the past few days and we are looking forward to a big weekend. We would have confessed to this sooner, but our hands were tied."
