EverythingTwilightActors Have Said About Their Time in the Franchise (and It's Not All Nice!)

Mar. 15, 2025

Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson.Photo:Kiyoshi Ota/Getty

Kiyoshi Ota/Getty

More than 15 years after the firstTwilightfilm premiered, many of the young actors who skyrocketed into global fame with the massive franchise are still at the top of Hollywood, earning Oscar nominations and directing projects themselves.As many of the actors were in their teens and 20s when they landed the roles that would catapult their careers, its no surprise that there are mixed feelings about the films and the fandom they inspired (some more mixed than others!).FromRobert Pattinson’s brutally honest takes toAshley Greene’s walk down memory lane for her rewatch podcast, see what the stars of theTwilightfranchise have said about the five films.

More than 15 years after the firstTwilightfilm premiered, many of the young actors who skyrocketed into global fame with the massive franchise are still at the top of Hollywood, earning Oscar nominations and directing projects themselves.

As many of the actors were in their teens and 20s when they landed the roles that would catapult their careers, its no surprise that there are mixed feelings about the films and the fandom they inspired (some more mixed than others!).

FromRobert Pattinson’s brutally honest takes toAshley Greene’s walk down memory lane for her rewatch podcast, see what the stars of theTwilightfranchise have said about the five films.

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Robert Pattinson

Robert Pattinson.summit; Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

summit; Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

Over the yearsPattinsonhas not minced his words whenit comes to talking about the filmsthat skyrocketed him into super stardom.

During a2019 chat with Jennifer LopezforVariety’s Actors on Actors series, Pattinson, who played Edward Cullen, said Twilight is “a weird story” and that he found it “strange how people responded.”

So it stands to reason that Pattinson also has concerns about fans' attraction to his character, as he believes Edward to be a “weirdo.”

He then went on to say, “If Edward wasn’t a fictional character and you met him in reality he is like one of those guys who would probably be an axe murderer or something.”

Overall, he said in another interview, he just didn’t think “a lot of the stuff” in the movies made “any sense.”

“Why are they still going to high school?," he said in aninterview with Chris Van Vliet"…They’re 100 years old."

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Anna Kendrick

Anna Kendrick.summit; Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

summit; Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

“My experience was really unique in that cast,” Kendrickrecalled toBusiness Insiderearlier this month.“Almost everyone else in the cast had to treat every moment like life and death, good versus evil, our eternal souls are on the line — and all I had to do was show up and make a snarky comment as I kind of pass through the frame.”

“I was very grateful to be privy to this kind of cultural phenomenon without it really impacting me in the ways that I think would’ve felt really challenging and overwhelming,” she said. “The fans of those books are so invested that even if you came into the franchise really late and you had one line but you were playing a vampire or a werewolf, they’re obsessed with you. They’re picking apart every detail of your costume and your gestures and whatever, and I just didn’t have that level of responsibility.”

Also, her reaction to Alex Cooper trying to get her to engage with the soundtrack ahead of herCall Her Daddyinterview is a must-watch.

03of 08Kristen StewartKristen Stewart.Alamy; Sebastian Reuter/GettyKristen Stewart, who first stepped into the role of Bella Swan as a teen, experienced all of the insanity of the overnight fame, but as she toldInterviewmagazine in 2015, she appreciates the experience.“Anybody who wants to talk s— aboutTwilight, I completely get it, but there’s something there that I’m endlessly, and to this day, f—— proud of,” she said. “My memory of it felt—still feels—really good.“All that said, though, she still had a reaction to hearing the word “Bella.““All I can hear right now when I’m trying to just [recall the movie] is ‘Bella’,” she said toVariety.“Everyone just referring, constantly to her even if she’s not in the scene.““I was just like ‘enough, Bella needs to go to bed, Bella needs to go just chill for a while,” she added.Also toVariety,Stewart explained whyTwilightis “such a gay movie.““I mean, a Mormon woman wrote this book,” she continued of author Stephenie Meyer. “It’s all about oppression, about wanting what’s going to destroy you. That’s a very Gothic, gay inclination that I love.”

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Kristen Stewart

Kristen Stewart.Alamy; Sebastian Reuter/Getty

Alamy; Sebastian Reuter/Getty

Kristen Stewart, who first stepped into the role of Bella Swan as a teen, experienced all of the insanity of the overnight fame, but as she toldInterviewmagazine in 2015, she appreciates the experience.

“Anybody who wants to talk s— aboutTwilight, I completely get it, but there’s something there that I’m endlessly, and to this day, f—— proud of,” she said. “My memory of it felt—still feels—really good.”

All that said, though, she still had a reaction to hearing the word “Bella.”

“All I can hear right now when I’m trying to just [recall the movie] is ‘Bella’,” she said toVariety.“Everyone just referring, constantly to her even if she’s not in the scene.”

“I was just like ‘enough, Bella needs to go to bed, Bella needs to go just chill for a while,” she added.

Also toVariety,Stewart explained whyTwilightis “such a gay movie.”

“I mean, a Mormon woman wrote this book,” she continued of author Stephenie Meyer. “It’s all about oppression, about wanting what’s going to destroy you. That’s a very Gothic, gay inclination that I love.”

04of 08Taylor LautnerTaylor Lautner.Alamy; Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagicYears after the last film premiered in 2012,Taylor Lautnersays his perspective on the films — and the impact it had on him — have changed.“I was always incredibly thankful, and feel super blessed for what it brought me, but maybe there was a little bit of, like, resentment deep in there going like, ‘I wish I could have just experienced this part of normalcy,'”Lautner said in 2023. “Now, I wouldn’t change it. But I think it needed the growth to get to that place.”

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Taylor Lautner

Taylor Lautner.Alamy; Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Alamy; Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Years after the last film premiered in 2012,Taylor Lautnersays his perspective on the films — and the impact it had on him — have changed.

“I was always incredibly thankful, and feel super blessed for what it brought me, but maybe there was a little bit of, like, resentment deep in there going like, ‘I wish I could have just experienced this part of normalcy,'”Lautner said in 2023. “Now, I wouldn’t change it. But I think it needed the growth to get to that place.”

05of 08Kellan LutzKellan Lutz.summit; Vivien Killilea/GettyAfter appearing in the first three Twilight films,Kellan Lutzalmost didn’t come back forBreaking Dawnin part because of how much “waiting” around on sets he did during filming.“I remember some days we were just waiting on set,” Lutz said on an episode of fellow Twilight alum Ashley Greene’s podcast,The Twilight Effect(perBusiness Insider). “Twilightand all the movies were probably the most waiting on set I’ve ever experienced. For people who know me, I’m very impatient and I like being busy and doing stuff. I’d rather be doing stuff than sitting there, standing there.“Though after pushback from his team, he opted to stay and would appear in all five of the franchise’s films.At the recentPeopleCon in France, Lutz took a trip down memory lane and reminisced about the audition process for the first movie, sharing that he was initially asked to audition for Edward — a character he found “depressing” — and he passed.When the audition for Emmett came through, he was more drawn to him and went for it, eventually booking the role.

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Kellan Lutz

Kellan Lutz.summit; Vivien Killilea/Getty

summit; Vivien Killilea/Getty

After appearing in the first three Twilight films,Kellan Lutzalmost didn’t come back forBreaking Dawnin part because of how much “waiting” around on sets he did during filming.

“I remember some days we were just waiting on set,” Lutz said on an episode of fellow Twilight alum Ashley Greene’s podcast,The Twilight Effect(perBusiness Insider). “Twilightand all the movies were probably the most waiting on set I’ve ever experienced. For people who know me, I’m very impatient and I like being busy and doing stuff. I’d rather be doing stuff than sitting there, standing there.”

Though after pushback from his team, he opted to stay and would appear in all five of the franchise’s films.

At the recentPeopleCon in France, Lutz took a trip down memory lane and reminisced about the audition process for the first movie, sharing that he was initially asked to audition for Edward — a character he found “depressing” — and he passed.

When the audition for Emmett came through, he was more drawn to him and went for it, eventually booking the role.

06of 08Ashley GreeneAshley Greene.summit; Jon Kopaloff/GettyWhen looking back at her time on the set of the five films ahead of her podcast launch, Greenetold PEOPLEthat the cast went through their trials and tribulations.“We did this for five years and there was a lot of ups and downs, and some drama, and we were like a family, but also in our 20s, and so there were kind of tiffs here and there,” she said in 2022. “So I think, it’s one of those things where, for the most part, it was a good experience, but we were human beings, and we were in our 20s. You can imagine who you were in your 20s versus who you are now.”

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Ashley Greene

Ashley Greene.summit; Jon Kopaloff/Getty

summit; Jon Kopaloff/Getty

When looking back at her time on the set of the five films ahead of her podcast launch, Greenetold PEOPLEthat the cast went through their trials and tribulations.

“We did this for five years and there was a lot of ups and downs, and some drama, and we were like a family, but also in our 20s, and so there were kind of tiffs here and there,” she said in 2022. “So I think, it’s one of those things where, for the most part, it was a good experience, but we were human beings, and we were in our 20s. You can imagine who you were in your 20s versus who you are now.”

07of 08Peter FacinelliPeter Facinelli.summit; Vivien Killilea/GettyThough it has been more than a decade since the last film premiered, Peter Facinellitold PEOPLE in 2020that he would gladly reprise his role as the patriarch of the Cullen family if the opportunity arose.“I love that character,” he said. “[He’s] so much fun to play and that world is so fun.“More recently, Facinellicompared the multiyear journeyhe and his castmates went on while making the films to a “long roadtrip” and says the group “feels like family” both “off and on camera.”

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Peter Facinelli

Peter Facinelli.summit; Vivien Killilea/Getty

Though it has been more than a decade since the last film premiered, Peter Facinellitold PEOPLE in 2020that he would gladly reprise his role as the patriarch of the Cullen family if the opportunity arose.

“I love that character,” he said. “[He’s] so much fun to play and that world is so fun.”

More recently, Facinellicompared the multiyear journeyhe and his castmates went on while making the films to a “long roadtrip” and says the group “feels like family” both “off and on camera.”

08of 08Jackson RathboneJackson Rathbone.summit; Presley Ann/GettyAs recently as Oct. 23, 2024, Jackson Rathbone jumped on X to share that he would be up for starring in a “Jasper origin film.“In response to a tweet fromVarietyabout “Lionsgate’s losing streak,” Rathbone said a film about his character’s backstory would be a"guaranteed flop-breaker.“In the subsequent thread, many fans pointed out that Jasper’s backstory as a member of the Confederate army “does not need airtime” (which Rathbone addresses at lengthin a secondary thread).

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Jackson Rathbone

Jackson Rathbone.summit; Presley Ann/Getty

summit; Presley Ann/Getty

As recently as Oct. 23, 2024, Jackson Rathbone jumped on X to share that he would be up for starring in a “Jasper origin film.”

In response to a tweet fromVarietyabout “Lionsgate’s losing streak,” Rathbone said a film about his character’s backstory would be a"guaranteed flop-breaker.”

In the subsequent thread, many fans pointed out that Jasper’s backstory as a member of the Confederate army “does not need airtime” (which Rathbone addresses at lengthin a secondary thread).

source: people.com