More than a decade after the final Twilight movie hit theaters, Kristen Stewart has been looking back at the franchise with a very different view.
The actress, who played Bella Swan in all five movies, admitted that she and Robert Pattinson, who played Edward Cullen, took the first movie extremely seriously and were determined to make it feel as real as possible.
Highlights
- Kristen Stewart admitted she and Robert Pattinson took the first Twilight movie "way too seriously" while filming.
- Looking back, Stewart now laughed at how intensely she approached Bella Swan.
- Despite the reflection, she said she'd happily return to the franchise.
Looking back, Stewart laughs at how intensely she approached the role.
Kristen Stewart admitted that she took the first Twilight movie way too seriously
She was just 17 when she filmed the first movie, which was released in 2008. Looking back, she said she had been determined to make the teenage romance feel as serious and meaningful as possible.
"The first one, we were talking about this earlier because someone else asked about it, but I was such a pretentious little loser trying to make it like the very best."
Stewart said she wasn’t the only one taking things so seriously.
She and Pattinson were both approaching the movie with the same attitude.
"It was so, so serious."
She recalled how they would essentially tell themselves they needed to make the material more important.
"Me and Rob were like, 'Yeah, this is like f**ing epic, like, let's try and elevate this s***,” she said.
Now, however, Stewart can see the humor in it.
Her younger self was trying so hard to make everything feel real that she sometimes forgot the simplest approach.
"And it's like, 'Just be exactly what age you are and say the words.'"
Stewart said the cast had a very teenage way of looking at the movies at the time
They wanted everything to feel authentic, but they also felt frustrated by the production around them.
"It was always like, 'Oh my god, embarrassing. I just want it to be f***ing real and it's impossible.'"
Years later, she sees the first movie differently. "Then you look at it and you're like, 'It was f***ing real,' and kind of campy and sick."
For Stewart, the dramatic tone now makes more sense because the characters were teenagers experiencing intense emotions.
"Anything like too much is so perfect for that period of time where you're not going to do subtle stuff when you're like a teenager dying."
Stewart also shared that she isn’t tired of talking about Twilight and she would do it all again
She played Bella across five films, which together earned around $3.3 billion worldwide.
The first movie, directed by Catherine Hartwicke, arrived in November 2008 and made around $412 million worldwide from a reported $37 million budget.
Four more movies followed through 2012, turning the vampire romance into a worldwide phenomenon.
Despite how often she is still asked about the franchise, Stewart said she isn’t annoyed by it.
"It's really funny because it was like we did five of those movies, and it took five years, and then we've never stopped talking about it."
She explained that the cast had been asked to comment on the movies almost immediately, even while they were still making them.
"During the time in which they were coming out, we were really always being asked to kind of look at it from the outside, which was not possible to do yet."
At the time, she said she was focused on making the movies. "I'm just making the movies, and everyone's like tripping. I don't know."
When asked if she will actually return to the world of Bella and Edward, she said, “I would do it again.”
She added, “Yeah, I love it.”
Stewart's answer comes as other members of the original cast have also shown interest in returning
Pattinson, who played Edward, said in a previous interview that he would be interested in making another Twilight movie too.
During a Vanity Fair lie-detector segment, Jennifer Lawrence asked him whether he would make a new Twilight movie.
"Oh yeah, for sure."
Pattinson joked, "It'd be great. I like taking jobs of younger actors... I wanna play 17 again."
He has also recently defended the serious approach the original cast took to the movies.
"Everybody was approaching it so earnestly and took it really, really, really seriously."
He said there was no attempt to wink at the audience or make fun of the story.
"It's very real, which is strange for a movie about a vampire romance."
Furthermore, Stewart said she would love to direct a Twilight reboot
Stewart isn’t only interested in acting in the franchise again; she would also love the chance to direct a new version of Twilight.
She praised the directors who worked on the original movies, including Hardwicke and Chris Weitz.
"I love what Catherine [Hardwicke] did, I love what Chris [Weitz] did, I love what all of the directors did with the movies,” she told Entertainment Tonight.
Stewart said each director brought something personal to the films. "They were so themselves and weird and kind of like, squirrelly, and just so present in that time when they didn't really know what they were yet, like before they blew up."
She then imagined what could happen if a new version had a much bigger budget and more support.
"Imagine if we had like, a huge budget and a bunch of love and support."
Stewart said she would be interested in adapting the story itself. "Yeah, sure, I'll do the remake. I'm doing it! I'm committed!"
Besides Twilight, Stewart talked about her partner and her favorite kind of intimacy
While talking about her current work, Stewart has also opened up about her relationship with her wife, writer, and director Dylan Meyer.
The couple married in April 2025 after dating for several years.
Stewart recently described Meyer as “very cool” while promoting The Wrong Girls, which Meyer wrote and directed and in which Stewart stars.
"Dylan's, like, very cool. She's a cool girl."
The two also work together professionally through their production company, Nevermind Pictures, which they co-founded with Maggie McLean in 2023.
For Stewart, working creatively with someone she loves has a special meaning.
"Making films with someone is my favorite form of intimacy."
She explained why the work feels so personal to her.
"I think when movies are really good, they're like an act of love."
That is why she said working with her closest friends and family makes sense to her.
"It makes complete and total sense for me to, like, work with my closest friends and family."
Stewart's current project, The Wrong Girls, marks another collaboration with Meyer. The film, which also features Alia Shawkat, LaKeith Stanfield, Tony Hale, Zack Fox, Geena Davis, Kate McKinnon and Kumail Nanjiani, was released on August 14.
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