Tyler Hoechlin’s New Role Tests This Fan’s Limits

LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 23: Actor Tyler Hoechlin attends Vanity Fair and FIAT Toast To "Young Hollywood" at Chateau Marmont on February 23, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)
LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 23: Actor Tyler Hoechlin attends Vanity Fair and FIAT Toast To “Young Hollywood” at Chateau Marmont on February 23, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Vanity Fair)

I thought there was no limit to the levels of bad movies I would sit through in order to watch Tyler Hoechlin on screen. But it turns out that the limit is 50. As in Fifty Shades of Grey.

Yesterday, pictures of Hoechlin being picked up at the Vancouver Airport (with a ginormous suitcase) circulated on Twitter, prompting fans to speculate what he was in Vancouver to film. Early reports mention that the van that picked him up said Fifty Shades on the side, but some fans – including this one – hoped that wasn’t true. Then TheWrap reported that Hoechlin had indeed been cast in Fifty Shades Darker as Boyce Fox.

First off, I’d like to state for the record that I am fully aware that no one – especially not me – really has the right to tell Hoechlin what roles he can and cannot take. I don’t know him personally, or his limits, or his bank account, and it’s not my place to police his career. He’s not a big enough star that he can just turn down roles that are offered to him, and as an actor he needs to stay working.

Not to mention that this is a well-known and talked about series, which will give him more visibility. Plus his character (what kind of name is BOYCE, honestly) is apparently so miniscule that fans of the book couldn’t even remember who he was – because he was only mentioned in the books, never seen, and his role will be “fleshed out” in the movie. So there’s that.

That said, I’m disappointed in this news, mostly because I have a ton of issues with the Fifty Shades series, and it’s simply a venture that I cannot support, even with Hoechlin’s involvement. It’s not just the fact that it’s a gross misrepresentation of BDSM culture or that it romanticizes an unhealthy relationship… It’s just flat out a bad movie. I mean, yeah, it made a lot of money – but commercial success isn’t an indicator of quality. Critics mostly panned its poor acting and bad writing, not to mention its pacing issues and its portrayal of sex scenes. Pretty much the only good thing about this movie is the soundtrack (which is, sadly, excellent).

I love Hoechlin. I do. I want to support him in everything he does because I am a fan not only of his acting but also him as a person. But it looks like Grizzly Rage will remain the worst movie I have watched for Hoechlin. Sorry, man. I want you to have a great film career, but god, at what cost?

One bright spot in this news is the knowledge that former Teen Wolf castmate Dylan O’Brien will be in Vancouver next month to start filming The Death Cure, the third installment in the Maze Runner franchise. Maybe the two will hang out again and we can get pictures, because I have really missed seeing the two of them together.

Keep your fingers crossed that Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some, which comes out in April, will help Hoechlin land some meatier roles in better projects. Until then, godspeed, man. I hope you nail the hell out of this role, and you can rest assured that while I can’t in good conscience spend money on this film, I will probably see your other three upcoming movies in theaters more than once.

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.


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12 thoughts on “Tyler Hoechlin’s New Role Tests This Fan’s Limits

  1. I’m with you. I like Tyler Hoechlin and find him very talented but no way in HELL would I ever watch this movie.

    I mean sure it’s a chance to get noticed and get exposure but still WHY?!

    1. His character’s not even big enough (at the moment) for him to do promo! No good can come of this!

  2. This, though. I’ve seen many of his fans already coming to his defense over people being disappointed in this and repeatedly pointing out that it’s just a job, which I guess is supposed to mean that we shouldn’t be upset about it. I get that it’s a job and he needs it, I really do. The others who share my disappointment understand it as well. We get it. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be upset about it. He’s getting an overwhelming amount of support for this role compared to the amount of “hate” and “whining and complaining” that the fans are claiming he’s receiving.

    Most of us are still continuing to support him after this movie. We’re just not supporting this particular role, but we still wish him all the best. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

    If he wanted his name out there, though, he’s certainly achieved that.

    1. Yes, I’ve mostly seen people being disappointed but understanding. I’ve only seen a couple of posts that are calling out those people but I’m sure there are more. Being disappointed doesn’t mean we don’t get it. I have high hopes for his future career and I don’t necessarily see this as a good idea? But then I’m not an expert in this. I want him to get more roles; it would just be nice if they were in good movies that I actually wanted to see.

  3. To keep playing roles is important as an actor but why the 50 Shades series, Tyler? Why? And a role of a character who was only ‘mentioned’ in the books?…I cringe at what “fleshed out” means to the people behind 50 Shades series…Why not have done some indie movie…sigh!…but yeah, as said in the article, just not supporting this particular role of his, and looking forward to his other upcoming projects.

    1. I was actually going to bring up the “fleshed out” thing but decided not to. I’m not happy about that either. He spent so much time on TW being treated like man candy and FSOG is not exactly a step in the right direction. Hopefully his character is small enough that it won’t be like that.

  4. 100% in gareement with you: I’ll pass…besides I didn’t even like 50 shades as soundtrack you can imagine LOL?! >_<
    As a whole it's the worst mainstream project IMO of the last 10 years at least (not even the actors for my taste were truly attractive): & perhaps the worst part of the whole phenomenon is the total lack of humour in it, that probably would have saved a bit this rubbish…too bad indeed. But on the bright side, since it's uber popular, I'm positive that it'll bring more fame to Hoechlins, since it's afterall aimed to ladies first, that tend to notice this kind of eye-candy right?! (Whereas O'Brien chosen a genre that I prefer but that isn't as known among the adult women public, so as a result I believe he's still virtually unknown to those who weren't already familiar with Teen Wolf).

  5. The worst thing for me is that he chose to be in a movie that portrays a relationship that has so many consent issues. Anastasia’s is afraid of Christian (afraid that he’ll punish her) so she does things she doesn’t want to do. That’s basically rape. Not to mention that he persuades her that his view of a BDSM relationship that includes painful punishment is the only one that exists.
    And Hoechlin chose to sign on to this movie for a minor role. A minor role he could have gotten in every other movie. It wasn’t a big role so that you could say “I have to take it because it is a once in a lifetime opportunity”. No, he deliberatly chose to be in this movie although he will have plenty of chances in the future to play a minor role like this in other movies.

  6. AI, not even his beautiful face is going to make me watch that shitty movie

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