14 DAY TRIAL // Last week, one of the biggest events in television (in recent months, at least) took place, as the “Eclipse” Oprah Special aired, which fans of “The Twilight Saga” must already know only too well. It also included an interview with the main stars, Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, with the three of them sitting down again shortly after it to speak to USA Today about the Twilight machine and their plans for after it comes to an end.
For starters, the USA Today piece notes, despite the screaming crowds that seem to accompany them wherever they go and that has literally made them avoid coming out in public almost completely, all three young actors are extremely very down to earth. They’re very happy and grateful to have been offered the chance to be part of this incredibly successful franchise, especially since they first agreed to do it out of love for the story. They continue to work on it because they love the characters and want to have their story told, they explain.
At this point, they don’t even have to work this hard to keep the ball rolling, they admit, since the “Twilight” juggernaut has almost got a life of its own, which became apparent after an Eclipse screening for a handful of fans, courtesy of Oprah. “Stewart says of Eclipse’s positive early reception: “It is a well-oiled machine at this point. We have had a lot of time to establish what this thing is about and a lot of time to consider it. And they gave us so much more money this time. So that is exciting.’ Pattinson, looking bemused, quickly clarifies her statement. ‘For the film. The budget.’ Stewart is chagrined. ‘Oh, my God. No, no. That didn’t even occur to me. They gave us so much more money to make the film look good!’” USA Today writes.
Even if, at this point, Pattinson, Stewart and Lautner are almost unrecognizable for many fans other than as Edward, Bella and Jacob, the actors working hard to avoid being typecast after “Twilight” ends. As the aforementioned publication notes, they’re already taking up parts in either indie movies or big-house productions, all in a bid to move away from the image that’s stuck in the mind of millions of teens (and not only) from around the world. So far, they did so with little success but they’re not losing hope just yet.
“Stewart and Pattinson, both bookworms and drawn to art-house fare, earned OK reviews but underwhelming ticket sales for their two recent releases, the girl-band bio The Runaways and the romantic melodrama Remember Me. But they continue to be in demand for more mature roles. Stewart is psyched to be a part of a big-screen version of Jack Kerouac's On the Road, which starts shooting in August. Pattinson recently wrapped his work on the London set of Bel Ami as a 19th-century social-climbing rogue opposite Kristin Scott Thomas, Uma Thurman and Christina Ricci. […] Meanwhile, Lautner – a natural athlete who played a high school track star in the box-office-topping ensemble comedy Valentine’s Day – seems to be angling to become the next big action hero with upcoming roles in the thriller Abduction and Stretch Armstrong, a 3-D adventure based on a toybox muscleman,” USA Today further writes.
For the whole extensive piece on the three hottest stars of the moment, please refer here. “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” arrives in US theaters on June 30 so, until then, make sure you keep an eye on this space for more details.