The ‘Twilight’ saga made Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart famous with two characters they are still remembered for and became part of popular culture.
However, Pattinson, Stewart and other cast members weren’t the only ones thought to be involved in the vampire saga.
There are other names that are now extremely well known in Hollywood who also auditioned for roles but were rejected by the franchise.
Dave Franco
His younger brother James Franco said in an interview that he attended the audition for the role of Edward, although the director and writer did not have him in mind for the main character.
Franco didn’t know how far he got in the audition, but he read the script for the director. However, he admitted that he could be one of hundreds being considered for the role, so he wasn’t too worried about not getting the lead.
Dave Franco became famous for the films “The Illusionists”, but he has also triumphed in comedy in “21 Jump Street”, “Neighbors”, “The Little Hours” and “The Disaster Artist” with his brother.
In 2020, he made his horror directorial debut with ‘The Rental’, so his Hollywood career was established without being part of the vampire saga.
Michelle Trachtenberg
Michelle Trachtenberg already had experience with vampires, having been on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” a series with a similar theme but that didn’t take blood drinkers so seriously.
The actress had been in talks to play Bella since 2005, but the project took another 3 years into production, so Trachtenberg left her moment as a teen star behind and was left out of Twilight.
Ben Barnes
Ben Barnes said he was one of the first to be considered to play Edward Cullen, but the production did not want him to share the lead role with the “Narnia” saga and that he was too old to bring the teenage vampire to life.
The actor accepted that it wouldn’t be right for someone turning 30 to play a teenager and flirted with the 17-year-old lead, so he didn’t think it was a bad decision to stay out of the project.
The actor gained popularity the same year Twilight was released for ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’, where he played Prince Caspian.
Ben Barnes later starred in another coming-of-age saga in the Shadow and Bone adaptation from Netflix.
Lucy Hale
Lucy Hale was part of the cast of the series “Pretty Little Liars”, but before her success on television she auditioned for the role of Alice in the first part of “Twilight”.
The actress admitted that when she auditioned for the role she did not know the literary epic, but she tried her luck again in the second film to play Jane and was not cast either.
Lily Collins
Lily Collins revealed that one of her first film auditions was for the role of Belle, but recalled the moment as a funny anecdote rather than a career-defining rejection.
Collins later worked with Taylor Lautner on “Abduction” and starred in the teen epic “The Mortal Instruments” , which was heavily compared to ‘Twilight’.
However, Lily Collins’ career took off as she became one of the most loved young actresses in the industry with the series ‘Emily in Paris’ and even starred in the Oscar-nominated ‘Mank’.
Henry Cavill
Henry Cavill was one of those considered by the production to play Edward Cullen, and writer Stephenie Meyer was happy with the idea, but director Catherine Hardwicke believed that Cullen looked too old for the lead role.
Meyer insisted on keeping him in the franchise and offered the role of Carlisle, the father of the vampires, but Cavill never reached an agreement to participate in the adaptation.
Henry Cavill triumphed in the industry as Superman, a character even more popular than Edward Cullen, so we don’t regret not being a vampire.
Source: univision
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
