First Posted: 2/19/2015
“Fifty Shades of Grey” is the No. 1 movie in the nation for a reason and according to the film’s 4.2 out of 10 rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s not because it’s the next contendor for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The book-turned-movie seems to be a hit because of a growing intrigue of sexual fantasy and promiscuity.
SeekingArrangement.com, a website that specializes in unusual dating experiences, reports that wealthy, successful, dominant and innately appealing men like Christian Grey are out there and many women are turning to the site to seek them out. The number of women seeking out a BDSM-friendly relationship (bondage discipline dominance and submission, sadism masochism) and mentioning “Fifty Shades” terms on the site has doubled since the release of the film earlier this month — totalling 381,000 female members actively searching for a Christian Grey-type relationship. It probably doesn’t hurt that the average man seeking this type of relationship on the site has a net worth of $500,000.
Brandon Wade, Founder and CEO of SeekingArrangement.com said many women desire a life similar to Anastasia Steele, the main character in “Fifty Shades of Grey.” The blockbuster is helping them realize it. The luxury dating site’s public relations manager, Brook Urick, told Weekender: “As the public intrigue on the topic of BDSM grows, more people are opening up to the idea.”
We asked a group of women who had just seen a showing of “Fifty Shades of Grey” at Cinemark in Moosic: Would Christian Grey be the ideal man? Could women in Northeastern Pennsylvania be someone’s sex slave?
Judy Walkowicz of Pittston did not hesitate to confirm Christian Grey is her model for the perfect man.
“Men are babies. I’ve been married twice and both of them were more needy than my own children. At this stage in my life, I’d be more than willing to be with a guy who wanted nothing from me but sex,” Walkowicz said.
Sarah McPartland of Clarks Summit is happily married, but admits the movie made her question what it would be like to be with someone like Christian Grey.
“I was dragged to this movie by my girlfriend from work, to be honest. I’m married. I get everything I need in that department within my marriage, so the idea of the movie did nothing for me, but after seeing the guy who played Christian in this movie, I can’t say I wouldn’t be tempted to do anything he asked me to,” McPartland said.
As for Nikki Jordan of Scranton, being a sex slave to a billionaire would be a smart decision.
“I’m not a slut, but I’m not stupid either. If a beautiful piece of man asked me to sign a contract like that, I wouldn’t be able to sign that thing fast enough. If someone wanted to buy me a new car and take me for a ride in a helicopter, I’d let him whip me and tie me up. I’d be dumb if I didn’t,” she said.
Not everyone shares their sentiments, including Lauren Avery of Throop.
“I just think that women have fought too hard to be taken seriously in society. Women shouldn’t stand for it. The movie rationalized women being submissive to a spoiled rich little bitch. I’m a strong woman. I want to handcuff a guy and make him feel like he doesn’t matter, like men do to women all the time,” Avery said.
For some, the actual appeal is not about the sex. A few women we spoke to who admitted they were open to the idea of a Christian Grey-type relationship found an allure beyond S&M.
“Christian Grey is a one-woman man. Even though he just wanted sex, he promised to only be with Anastasia. If signing a contract is what it takes to find a guy who is true to only me, then where do I sign?” said Megan Petersen of Scranton.
It’s been said that women are drawn to flawed men, and Barb Lepkowski of Olyphant admitted she is one of those women.
“Perfection is overrated. I like a man with flaws. A man who is so successful and charming and handsome but mysterious and broken and has flaws has a certain sexiness to them that I can’t explain. The most attractive thing about Christian is that he’s so unaware of his appeal. He’s not arrogant, he’s just confident, but still so vulnerable. If there are any men like him out there, I’d probably divorce my husband. Don’t tell him I said that,” Lepkowski said.
The luxury dating site is known for its users to build relationships on their own terms.
“Most of the men on SeekingArrangement.com are business men and want something traditional women can’t give them, like monogamy, marriages, kids. A lot of the women are young, ambitious, maybe in college or just starting out there lives,” Urick said.
People with something to offer can join the site as a Sugar Daddy or Sugar Mommy, and anyone interested in reaping those benefits can join as a Sugar Baby.
Would you like your own Christian Grey?
If so, SeekingArrangement.com will see you now.
