The recent critical and commercial success of The Housemaid, which grossed approximately $400 million worldwide against a reported budget of $30 million, brought erotic thrillers back into vogue. The genre peaked in the 1990s, with hits such as Basic Instinct and Fatal Attraction, but studios have largely ignored erotic movies in recent years, perhaps because of a perceived Gen Z aversion to sex. The landscape was quite different even a decade ago, when Hollywood delivered the highest-grossing erotic movie of all time, suggesting that millennials have no issues at all with on-screen intimacy. The movie in question is currently streaming on Netflix in the United States, but it'll leave the platform soon. Produced on a reported budget of $40 million, the film grossed around $570 million at the worldwide box office. Unlike The Housemaid, which has a "Certified Fresh" 73% critics' score and a "Verified Hot" 92% audience score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the 2015 erotic movie was critically panned with a 25% critics' score. However, this clearly didn't deter audiences from thronging the theaters. The film was successful enough to spawn two sequels, which were produced back-to-back and released in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Netflix Is Removing 'Fifty Shades of Grey' Soon We're talking, of course, about Fifty Shades of Grey. Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, the movie launched Dakota Johnson to stardom, and also featured Jamie Dornan in a role that almost went to Charlie Hunnam. Hunnam reportedly got cold feet at the last moment and quit the project. Fifty Shades of Grey was followed by Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, which grossed $380 million and $370 million worldwide, respectively. Both movies were directed by James Foley and produced on reported budgets of $55 million. Like the first installment, the sequels were critically panned, with both receiving 11% scores on Rotten Tomatoes. With Fifty Shades of Darker's 25% score, it would seem like the franchise peaked too soon. Both Johnson and Dornan have gone on to establish themselves as successful actors whose identities are rarely connected to the trilogy anymore. You can watch all three movies on Netflix, but only until June 1. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates. - Release Date - February 13, 2015 - Runtime - 125 minutes - Director - Sam Taylor-Johnson - Writers - Kelly Marcel, E.L. James - Producers - Dana Brunetti, E.L. James Literature student Anastasia Steele's life changes forever when she meets handsome, yet tormented, billionaire Christian Grey.