The film adaptation of the young adult novel series Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer has indeed gained immense popularity worldwide within the decade. Actors of one of the biggest movie franchises put a tremendous effort into contributing to the success of all Twilight series, Edward-Bella-Jacob trio, played by Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner, garnered maximum popularity with their brilliant character portrait.
Besides these actors, other members also put tremendous effort into bringing the character alive. The cast of this stunning film has come a long way, some of them are the industry’s biggest faces.
Many principal characters were there from the beginning of this film adaptation series while some characters appear in later series who were brilliant too. Each character has a crucial role that contributed to the development of the plot. Various talented actors pulled their roles brilliantly, which is why it gained large popularity.
Twilight Cast and Their Journey in Twilight Saga:
Bella Swan
The protagonist of the film Bella Swan played by Kristen Stewart is one of the most beloved characters in the film. The then-new face Kristen came a long way with her role as Bella. She gained huge fame and now she is one of the top actresses in the industry.
In the first movie, Twilight, Bella moves to Forks, Washington, to live with her father. She meets Edward Cullen in high school, falls in love, learns about his secret, and meets his vampire family, the Cullen family. The movie was an instant hit and a cultural phenomenon.
In the next movie Twilight Saga New Moon, The Cullen family leaves Fork to save Bella, making her fall into intense depression. Jacob helped her to cope with depression and saved her from another vampire attack. This movie broke all the box office records, earning a total of 113.5 million dollars.
Twilight Saga Eclipse deals with the love triangle of Edward-Bella-Jacob and their battle against Victoria and her newborn vampires. Around this time, the trio became an internet sensation divided between team Edward and Jacob. The journey of Bella Swan from human to falling in love with a vampire and turning into a vampire was a complete roller coaster, and Kristen Stewart became a household name.
Twilight Saga Breaking Dawn part 1 deals with Edward and Bella’s marriage and Bella’s complications with pregnancy. In Breaking Dawn, part 2, Bella turns into a vampire, and the great battle begins to save her half-human half-vampire daughter Renesmee against Volturi.
She was only 17 years old when the first movie came out. At a very young age, she became one of the highest-paying actresses. It was not Stewart’s first big-screen appearance. She appeared in many films before the Twilight Saga.
Her debut was in the- 2002 movie Panic Room alongside Jodie Foster. She played the role of a daughter. Besides this, she also appeared in In the Land of Women and Into the Wild.
After Twilight, Kristen Stewart became a big celebrity, and it was affecting her personal life widely. She was coping with fame. Speculation was spreading about- the fan-favorite reel-life couple, Edward and Bella. They might also have a fling in their real life.
Kristen Stewart’s relationship with co-star Robert Pattinson caught the attention of the Paparazzi. They photographed the duo many times. Although they denied their relationship. Stewart’s reputation was shamble for her cold and rude attitude towards reporters and fans.
Their relationship was in highlights everywhere, and Stewart was sick of it. Although they were in a relationship, they never confirmed it until, in 2012, Stewart fell into a disastrous cheating scandal. Eventually, their love life ended on a bitter note, and they broke up, which affected their life during the last segment of Twilight Saga Breaking Dawn part 2.
During her shoot between the Twilight series, she played a role in the 2012 movie Snow White and the Huntsman, when she falls into an enormous scandal. Stewart was caught kissing the married director of the film Rupert Sanders, which was the fall down of her career. Fans were devastated by the news, and she was hugely condemned.
After a long break, Kristen Stewart returned to her acting career by appearing in indie films such as Clouds of Sils Maria, American Ultra, Still Alice, etc. Stewart did many blockbusters later, which brought back her fame.
She appeared in the big-budget movie Charlie’s Angels alongside Naomi Scott, Ella Balinska, and the adventure thriller Underwater. Her next big-budget project was the movie Spencer, where she played the role of Princess Diana, released in 2021.
Edward Cullen
Robert Pattinson, as Edward Cullen, sought instant fame after the movie. Before Twilight Saga, Robert Pattinson did another big franchise movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. But Pattinson’s role in Twilight Saga as a flashy vampire is the one that gained him all the spotlight.
In the first movie, Twilight, Edward acted as the serious-looking teen boy, a member of the Olympic Coven, who became the love interest of Bella Swan. This British actor started his career with a 2004 German movie named Ring of the Nibelungs. However, his career had a tumultuous start with some bad auditions.
He even mentioned in many interviews that he gets nervous before auditions. His second movie was Vanity Fair, although they cut his scenes without his knowledge. He was very disappointed, and the casting director felt guilty and gave him a first-hand chance in the Harry Potter movie. His role as Cedric Diggory was brief, but it is no doubt that it was a breakout role of his acting career.
Pattinson’s landing in the role of Edward Cullen was also part of his destiny
He went to Los Angeles for another film’s audition, but he completely failed that audition. The next day he came to audition for Twilight with less hope, and he mentioned that it was easy for him to do, and he finally grabbed the role.
Pattinson wanted the character to be more emo-like and almost got fired
Robert Pattinson mentioned several times his little knowledge about vampires, so the character of Edward was very conflicting and hard for him to maintain. Pattinson wanted the character to be more emo-like, but the team never agreed with it, and he felt infuriated. He was very confused and not satisfied with his acting as a vampire.
In an interview, he shared that his manager was once on the set. He advised Pattinson not to be serious and smile more and warned him if he didn’t accordingly, he would get fired. He did many films while doing the Twilight series, one of which is Remember Me (2010), where he gained appraisal for his romantic role.
In 2011, he did another film, a romantic drama called Water for Elephants, alongside Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz. His relationship with co-star Kristen Stewart affected their private life too. After Steward’s cheating scandal, they reunited but eventually broke up in 2013.
Pattinson criticized the Twilight franchise several times for representing something he didn’t like. He jokingly said that he “stopped mentally progressing” during that time. However, as time passed, he took a liking to the time in Twilight and appreciated it being memorable. He now has genuine respect for that time, claiming it is “no longer cool to hate” Twilight.
After the Twilight departure, he worked hard to gain his identity as an actor and worked in multiple indie films instead of high-budget blockbusters. He appeared in the 2016 movie in The Lost City of Z and in the 2017 low-budget film Good Time where he played a bank robber. He got himself a more challenging role in later movies.
In 2019, Robert did a psychological horror film set on a remote island named The Lighthouse. In 2020, he returned to the mainstream big-budget film with Christopher Nolan’s Tenet. Recently, in 2022 he entered into the DC universe with the role of Bruce Wayne in The Batman. Adding that in the coming years, he will come back in the sequel of The Batman.
Jacob Black
Taylor Lautner played the role of Jacob Black, who stole many young teenagers’ hearts. Jacob, as a character, was a brilliant device to help grow the plot. Taylor Lautner did a great job as Jacob Black even causing a forever dilemma among the fans between Team Jacob and Team Edward.
He garnered a lot of attention after that and became a teen icon. Lautner first appeared on the silver screen as a child actor in the sci-fi action movie Shadow Fury (2001). Then his big gig was in the 2005 movie The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D when he was 13 years old.
He was only 16 when he snatched the role of Jacob Black in the Twilight movie. In the movie, he is one of the attractive young members of the Native American tribe, Quileute, who can shape-shift into a werewolf. In the first movie, Twilight, he was a mere character with long hair and a thin body who was Bella’s childhood friend.
Later in the movie New Moon, Jacob underwent drastic changes in his physical appearance, with short hair and a big muscular body. Due to this heavy change in the character’s appearance, the casting team was in jeopardy about whether to recast the character of Jacob Black. Filmmakers wanted him to bulk up and gain a typical muscular body, which comes with much pressure and expectation.
Fortunately, the then 16 or 17-year-old Lautner, spending much time in the gym, met up with the expectation and reprised the role of Jacob. This shows his dedication as an actor and love for the character, which made him go beyond expectation. People often criticized Taylor Lautner for his sexualized shirtless image, which was subject to media attention and he went through many controversies.
Taylor also complained about his fame being very young, and not leading a normal life. He opened up about being anxious and scared about going out in public after Twilight’s success. During the second and third editions of Twilight, he did another movie with an ensemble cast called Valentine’s Day opposite Taylor Swift, his then rumored girlfriend.
In 2011 did an action spy movie, Abduction, alongside Lily Collins, which didn’t go well according to the critics. Since the last movie of the Twilight series, Lautner hardly did any big roles, and his fame went into thin air. He did some low-budget films such as Tracers and Run the Tide and appeared in two movies alongside Adam Sandler in Grown Ups 2 and The Ridiculous 6.
He went on to do some Tv series like the BBC sitcom Cuckoo, replacing Andy Samberg. In 2016, Lautner did a recurring role in the comedy-horror series Scream Queen alongside Ryan Murphy. This Twilight star is very active on his social media.
He recently got engaged to his long-time girlfriend, a nurse, and influencer, Taylor Dome. In 2022, he came out of his acting hiatus by appearing in the Netflix movie Home Team, based on a true story of an NFL coach.
Carlisle Cullen
Peter Facinelli played the character of Carlisle Cullen, leader of the Olympic Coven. Facinelli is one of the highlighted actors in the Twilight series. After Twilight, like other casts, he also got recognition and has been working since.
In Twilight Saga, Carlisle Cullen was a blonde-haired man who worked as a doctor in Forks hospital. Throughout the series Twilight Saga, he was the leader and the father figure of the Cullen family to the adoptive Cullen siblings.
Peter Facinelli was not the first choice for the role of Carlisle Cullen
Peter Facinelli did his best with his calm and composed character, and his acting as a leader was much appreciated. However, he was not the first choice for the role of Carlisle Cullen. He revealed in Twilight co-star Ashley Green’s podcast that the casting crew shortlisted him, but another actor almost got the role.
Following that, he sent a gift to director Catherine Hardwicke and noted his interest in working with her in the future, and ultimately, he grabbed the role. Facinelli started his career in the 90s before Twilight. He was quite well-known for his acting gigs in Tv series like HBO’s Six Feet Under, FX’s Damages, Fox’s Fastlane, and Showtime’s Nurse Jackie, where he played Dr Fitch.
Since Twilight Saga, he has done many notable television series and films like NBC’s American Odyssey and CBS’ SWAT. He has his own production company and has written some films and produced them as well. He is currently engaged to Lily Anne Harrison and expecting their first child.
Esme Cullen
Elizabeth Reaser played Esme Cullen, the matriarch of the Cullen family and wife to Carlisle Cullen. Esme Cullen is one of the characters who accepted Bella from the story’s beginning. After the success of Twilight, Elizabeth Reaser went back to her television route.
She got recognition for her guest-star role in Grey’s Anatomy. For this role, she got a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in Drama series. She played a doctor’s role in the 2015 film Hello, My Name is Doris.
Then she acted in the Netflix hit The Haunting of Hill House (2018). Elizabeth Reaser then appeared in several more TV shows like True Detective, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Mad Men.
Alice Cullen
As Alice Cullen, a precognitive vampire with pixie-cut spiky hair, Ashley Greene handled the character pretty well. She is a lively, optimistic, and bubbly character who can see the future.
Initially, she wanted to be a model, but because of her height, she had to forget it and started focusing on her acting career. Though initially, she auditioned for the role of Bella, she ultimately got the role of Alice Cullen.
No doubt, Alice Cullen was her breakthrough role in her acting career, and in between the Twilight series, she acted in films like A Warrior’s Heart (2011) along with her Twilight co-star Kellan Lutz. She also acted in the horror film Apparition (2012), a thriller film Summer’s Blood (2009), and a comedy film Staten Island Summer (2015). Ashley Greene has done a few voice-over acts for some video games like “Batman: Arkham Knight” and “Batgirl: A Matter of Family.”
Ashley did some podcasts where she revealed some unknown facts from Twilight films. She is still friends with her Twilight co-stars, especially Kellan Lutz and Jackson Rathbone. Recently, Ashley Greene appeared in some movies like Christmas on My Mind (2019), The Charm Bracelet (2020), and Aftermath (2021).
Rosalie Hale
Nikki Reed played the character of Rosalie Hale, a blonde, beautiful and aggressive character, a member of the Olympic Coven who never drinks human blood for her appreciation of human life in the movie series. In the first movie of Twilight, Rosalie Hale portrayed a hostile character who is envious of Bella. But in the last series, they became closer, and she took care of Bella’s daughter.
Nikki Reed did start her career before Twilight. One of her notable works was Thirteen (2003), where she played the lead role, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, the same director as Twilight. In the Twilight series, Nikki Reed also did many small and big films.
In 2011, she did an indie thriller film, Pawn, and in 2015 she did a television show Sleepy Hollow based on The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, by Washington Irving. Since Twilight, she was inactive from the big screen; instead, she focused on her sustainable jewellery business. Nikki Reed last appeared briefly in one episode of Hulu’s original Dollface (2019).
Emmett Cullen
Emmett Cullen, one of the Cullen siblings, played by Kellan Lutz, has a powerful presence throughout the film with his huge muscular body and playful nature. Though he was the strongest and most intimidating character by his look, he has a carefree and dorky attitude by nature. Initially, Emmett got the opportunity to do the character of Edward Cullen.
But he turned down the role because he thought the character was very moody and emotional, as he wanted to do a cheerful character. Like other co-stars, Lutz also did many small and big roles in Tv and films. Because of his heavy physical appearance, he did many action films.
He appeared in the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street in 2010, the same year as the Twilight Saga: Eclipse, and then in Immortals (2011) and Warrior’s Heart (2011). In 2014, he did The Legend of Hercules, which failed critically. In Expendables 3 (2014), he worked alongside prominent actors like Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Jason Statham.
He played an FBI agent’s role in CBS’ FBI: Most Wanted in 2020. In an interview, he said he likes doing action and the hero-type role and will continue doing it. He mentioned if he got a chance, he would like to reprise the role of Emmett Cullen, focusing on his origin story. He is married to Tv host Brittany Gonzales since 2017.
Jasper Hale
Jackson Rathbone pulled the character of Jasper Hale pretty well with his lean body and fearful look. Jasper is Alice’s husband, and he has the power to sense and manipulate emotion. Jackson Rathbone was also among the actors who auditioned for Edward Cullen first, but rather, he got the chance of doing Jasper Hale.
He has no bitter feelings towards it. Instead, he praised Robert Pattinson for his role as Edward. Before Twilight, he did many shows and films, including a leading role in ABC’s Beautiful People.
In 2009, he made Criminal minds, where people critically praised him for his role. In 2010, he acted as Sokka in the 2010 remake of The Last Airbender’s animated series. Rathbone is also a musician and a member of his high school band, 101 Monkeys. They even released three albums in 2009.
Following Twilight, he did some small indie movies like Live at the Foxes Den (2013) and the horror movie City of Dead Men (2014). He released his first single in 2016 and an album in 2018 named American Spirit Blues. He also opened up about his past mental health struggle, which is hard for him to express.
His recent works are the drama film Dreaming Grand Avenue (2020) and the romance film Until We Meet Again (2020). Rathbone has balanced his personal life with his music and acting career. He married Sheila Hafsadi in 2013 and they have three children— son Monroe, whose godmother is Rathbone’s co-star Nikki Reed, daughter Presley and another son Felix.
Charlie Swan
Billy Burke played the role of Charlie Swan, the father of Bella Swan. He is a police chief in Forks, Washington, and he lives alone, but soon her daughter Bella moves to live with him when her mother remarries. Billy Burke was a television star before even joining the Twilight film.
He has the credit of doing multiple television series, but Twilight gave him the most of his popularity as Charlie Swan, beloved father to Bella. Following the film’s success, he returned to Tv once again with NBC’s Revolution and CBS’ Zoo. He played a villain in the series Major Crimes.
He recently acted in Netflix’s Maid (2021), one of the most-watched shows in many countries. Billy Burke also did a voice-over for Commissioner James Gordon in the animated DC comic Batman: The Long Halloween.
Jessica Stanley
Anna Kendrick portrayed the character of Jessica Stanley, who is now a prominent Hollywood actor. Jessica Stanley was Bella’s high school best friend. Their friendship had some ups and downs, but they ended up on good terms in Twilight Saga Eclipse when they graduated.
Like others, Anna Kendrick was very little known during Twilight and had work experience earlier. Kendrick started with theatre but rose to fame after Twilight and another popular film opposite George Clooney, named Up in the air (2009). She also got an Academy Award Oscar nomination for the latter film for Best Supporting Actress.
She gained more popularity as Beca in the Pitch Perfect musical comedy film series. Kendrick didn’t stop since then and worked in more high-profile movies such as the crime drama End of Watch (2012) and musical fantasy Into the Woods (2014), and a rom-com film Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016).
She did the crime drama The Accountant (2016) alongside Ben Affleck. She also lends her voice as Poppy in Trolls and the sequel. In 2016, Kendrick wrote and published an autobiographical collection, Scrappy Little Nobody.
This Oscar-nominated actor once mentioned that her role in Twilight was so minor that she even forgot that she even acted in the Twilight film. Since then, Anna Kendrick has worked so hard and done many films and multiple characters that she became one of the top actors in Hollywood.
James
Cam Gigandet portrayed the character of James. The first antagonist of the film series is a vicious, bloodthirsty tracker vampire who tried to hunt Bella. Cam Gigandet was only in the first film, but his actions as a vampire landed him in some horror movies such as The Unborn (2009) and The Tenement (2010).
Gigandet then appeared in the film The Magnificent Seven. The film got some mixed reviews. After some unsuccessful films, he moved to do some Tv series such as Reckless and Jake Green on Ice.
Laurent
Edi Gathegi played the character of Laurent, who was one of the members of James’ Coven. He is a dark-haired, olive-skinned vampire. In New Moon, when he returned to Forks, he stumbled upon Bella and tried to kill her, but the Quileute werewolves saved Bella, destroying him.
He only appeared in the first two films. Like others, his acting career also started before Twilight. Following Twilight, he appeared in X Men: First Class (2011), and then he did many television series such as Justified, The Blacklist, Briarpatch, etc.
He returned to the big screen with the indie film Princess of the Row as Bo Willis, which won many film festival awards and garnered him three best actor awards.
Victoria
In Twilight and Twilight Saga New Moon, Canadian actress Rachelle Lefevre played the character of Victoria. In the third film, Eclipse, Bryce Dallas Howard, a well-known Hollywood actor, replaced her as Victoria. Victoria is a vicious red-haired vampire of James’ Coven.
She had a brief appearance in the first edition, came for revenge in the second film New Moon, and fought till the third edition, Eclipse. Lefevre was very happy and satisfied playing Victoria. But the sudden decision of the filmmakers to her departure from the franchise shocked and stunned her.
The scheduling disputes made her drop off from the franchise. After that, she did some series and films like White House Down and Homefront. Since then, she returned to television with Under the Dome, Mary Kills People, Proven Innocent, and more.
Bryce Dallas Howard is a popular actress who sought fame even before Twilight. She got a Golden Globe Award nomination for her role in Kenneth Branagh’s As You Like It (2006). Some notable works are Spiderman 3 (2007), Jurassic World and its two sequels, The Mandalorian, and many more.
Aro
Michael Sheen portrays Aro. Aro is the principal antagonist of the series and the leader of ‘royalty’ Volturi, who wants to kill Edward and Bella’s daughter Renesmee and tries to destroy the Cullen clan. He has the power to read everyone’s thoughts through physical contact.
Micheal is a Welsh actor who started his journey with theatres in London. He appeared in many stage performances in the 90s and got nominations for many notable works. Sheen started his big-screen journey in the 2000s with many biographical movies, which gained him BAFTA and Emmy Awards nominations.
Michael Sheen as Aro was fantastic and brilliantly portrayed the dark antagonist. He was already a well-known actor before joining the Twilight franchise, but it’s no doubt that Twilight gave him much recognition.
Michael acted in a period drama called Master of Sex (2013), which got nominations for a Golden Globe. He also appeared in the sci-fi film Tron: Legacy (2010) and Woody Allen’s rom-com Midnight in Paris (2011). He even returned to the theatre in Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood after the Covid-19 shutdown.
Caius
Jamie Campbell Bower played Caius. Caius is an older Volturi member who is very strict with the laws. In Breaking Dawn Part 2, he punished Irina.
Jamie Campbell is a British actor who started his career in 2007. He gained popularity by playing Caius in Twilight Saga. He also became a part of two big franchise movies Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows Part 1 and Fantastic Beast: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
After that, he did a few television series too. In the very recent fourth series of Stranger Things, he played the part of Vecna/one and got a lot of critical acclaim for his role. Besides acting, he was also a lead singer of a band.
Jane
Dakota Fanning portrayed the character Jane in the Twilight series. Jane is another villainous character who is the guard of Volturi and has the power to make illusions of pain. In the book, the description of her appearance says that she is a bit boyish with short brown hair.
But in the film, they did not portray it the same way, so it became the most controversial portrayal of the Twilight Saga. Dakota Fanning rose to fame as a child actress. From 2007 she did appear in more mature roles.
She starred in The Runaways, Secret Life of Bees, the last three movies of Twilight Saga, etc. In 2018, she did Ocean’s 8 and got the lead role in the period drama The Alienist. She also appeared in the Quintin Tarantino film Once Upon a time in Hollywood.
In 2022 she appeared in the biographical series The First Lady. Dakota, alongside her sister Ella Fanning, appeared in the film called The Nightingale, a film adaptation of Kristin Hanna’s novel, set in World War II France.
Vladimir
Noel Fisher portrays Vladimir. Vladimir was one of the two surviving members of the Romanian coven who had a rivalry with Volturi. Noel Fisher is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Mickey Milkovich in the Showtime series Shameless.
He only appeared in the last film of the Twilight Saga. Noel also acted in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle and its sequel, as Michelangelo. He did some television shows, too, such as Lie to Me, Bones, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and more.
Seth Clearwater
BooBoo Stewart played the young wolf, Seth. Seth first appeared on New Moon. He was a constant ally and like a younger brother to Jacob, who can take the wolf form. BooBoo is a young American actor and singer.
Besides Seth Clearwater in the Twilight series, he appeared in other famous films such as Logan and X-Men: Days of Future Past. In 2013, he played a lead role in Running Deer. He rose to fame with Disney Channel by singing a few songs and acting in Disney’s Lab Rats: Elite Force.
In 2015, he returned to Disney Channel Original movie Descendants as Jay, which is famous among teenagers. He reprised his role as Jay in Descendants 2 (2017) and Descendants 3 (2019). BooBoo Stewart appeared in Netflix’s Julie and the Phantoms.
Renesmee Cullen
Renesmee Carlie Cullen is the half human half vampire daughter of Bella and Edward. Mackenzie Foy played the character of Renesmee. She first appeared in Breaking Dawn Part 1 in flash forwards and then in Breaking Dawn Part 2 where everyone is trying to save her against the Volturi.
Mackenzie was just 10 years old while filming Breaking Dawn Part 2 and she had a very nice relationship with everyone on the set.
no bc their off-screen dynamic is my favorite pic.twitter.com/H72dqLsFKk
— THE TWILIGHT SAGA 🍎 (@Twilight) June 27, 2022
After Twilight Mackenzie has acted in a lot of films including The Conjuring (2013), Interstellar (2014), The Little Prince (2015), Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015), Black Beauty (2020) and more.
Besides these cast members, other actors, too put an immense effort into making the characters alive. They are now doing great in their life and are distinguished faces in Hollywood.
