Christian Grey
Hey ladies, we don’t want to dampen your active fantasy life, but science has something important to tell you: This is what Christian Grey looks like. Yes, no matter what version of the billionaire playboy S&M fetishist and titular character in the Fifty Shades of Grey novels lives in your head, science has spoken — this is the new star of your salacious dreams.
MORE: (At Least) Fifty Shades of Erotica
Dr. Faye Skelton of the University of Lancashire polled a group of women who had all read the Fifty Shades of Grey books and, based on their recollected impressions, compiled a list of salient features and characteristics. She then entered the data into an image-generating computer and, voila. “While we don’t want to intrude on anyone’s fantasies, based on a small sample of women, this is the image of Christian Grey they have in their heads when reading the novels,” Skelton said to The Telegraph. Speak for yourself, we say.
While we would normally expect an uproar over this intrusion into our imagination, we expect the public to remain largely mum on this topic. Why? Because many people are still too embarrassed to admit they have read the novel that has become the fastest selling paperback of all time and has sat on the New York Times bestseller list for 18 weeks.
(MORE: Moms Gone Wild for Fifty Shades of Grey)
Skelton has yet to conjure up an image of the book’s young female protagonist, Anastasia Steele (or her inner goddess). That means you can go ahead and continue pretending it’s you — at least until the movie comes out.