Director Gus Van Sant is apparently so eager to win the bid to direct the big screen adaptation of E.L. James’ erotic romance novel Fifty Shades of Grey, that he didn’t wait for Universal Pictures and Focus Features to ask him to shoot a test reel.  James’ novel centers around Anastasia Steele and her introduction to a whole new world of sexual discovery and risqué activities in the hands of billionaire Christian Grey, and the feature film adaptation of the book has been a subject of high interest.

Van Sant, who’s best known for directing the Academy Award-winning Good Will Hunting and the biographical drama Milk, reportedly shot a steamy sex scene featuring Alex Pettyfer (Magic Mike) in an attempt to showcase his vision for the would-be film.  Hit the jump for more.

From The Wrap comes news that director Gus Van Sant has embarked on a sole mission to prove to the studios behind Fifty Shades of Grey that he’s the right man for the job.  Universal and Focus have declined to comment on the possibility of his hiring and have yet to name any potential candidates for the director’s chair.  While Van Sant’s efforts are no indication that he’ll certainly land the coveted role of director, there’s a possibility that if the studio decides on him, Pettyfer could be a candidate for the lead role of Christian Grey.

At the moment, the actor isn’t attached to the film, but was merely a choice of Van Sant’s to participate in the tape.  Pettyfer’s appeal to female audiences was seen in the 2012 Steven Soderbergh-directed hit Magic Mike and he’s currently working with Universal on the 1981 remake Endless Love, which could make him a likely contender for the starring role in Fifty Shades.

Van Sant has yet to add a new project to his directorial list since his last film, Promised Land – which was released by Focus Features in December 2012.  If chosen to direct Fifty Shades, he would be available to begin working on the project as soon as he got the green light.

Here’s the synopsis for Fifty Shades of Grey:

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.