“Fifty Shades of Grey” book series sales hit 100 million

PanARMENIAN.Net - Fifty Shades of Grey, the hit erotica series that essentially gave birth to the "mommy porn" genre, crossed an important milestone recently when it recorded its 100 millionth sale this week, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Publisher Vintage Books, a division of Random House, made the announcement.

The 100 million mark puts EL James' trilogy about the torrid -- and kinky -- affair between a billionaire and a college student in elite company. Other series that have hit that milestone include Twilight, Harry Potter, Sweet Valley High and James Bond.

The first book, Fifty Shades of Grey, was released in March 2012 (based on a self-published piece of Twilight fan fiction). Sales hit 10 million about six weeks later. By the end of 2012, sales had risen to between 65 million and 70 million copies.

All told, the three books have sold 45 million copies in the U.S. and an additional 27 million copies in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth countries. Sales have topped 1 million in France, Germany, Spain, Brazil and the Netherlands.

The series has been translated into 51 different languages, including Hebrew, Thai, Icelandic and Mongolian.

The movie version, starring Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan, is scheduled for release on Valentine's Day weekend 2015. Vancouver-based filming for the movie just wrapped last week, according to tweets from James and others associated with the project.

"The Fifty Shades trilogy struck a chord around the world that continues to resonate," said Anne Messitte, publisher of Vintage/Anchor Books in the U.S., in a statement. "We see new readers coming to the books every day, and the sales, two years after our initial publication, remain strong and steady."