Forget Edward, Twilight Execs Actually Fired the Hottest Cullen (Only to Rehire Him)

Summary:

• This week, all Twilight fans celebrate the 15th anniversary of the first movie release.
• The director of the movie, Catherine Hardwicke, has already shared that the studio reps had their concerns about Robert Pattinson playing Edward Cullen.
• The same happened with Peter Facinelli, who was considered too young to play Carlisle.

The fact that a movie can remain relevant more than a decade after its release is a true testament to the crew that worked on it. In the case of Twilight, it's a tribute not only to director Catherine Hardwicke and star Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner but also to the author of the original book, Stephenie Meyer.

After all, if there wasn't a book, there wouldn't be any talk of a project like this. Knowing the impact the story has had on popular culture in the 15 years since the first Twilight movie was released, it is safe to say that the world would be a very different place without it.

Not only does the anniversary provide an opportunity to celebrate the best moments, favorite actors, and funniest memes that came out of this particular movie and the entire franchise that followed, but it also provides an opportunity to learn more behind-the-scenes facts that were never known before.

While most of them have already been spilled by director Catherine Hardwicke herself on Josh Horowitz's Happy, Sad, Confused podcast, where they re-watched the whole movie, the cast has a chance to reveal some things they remember as well.

Why The Studio Didn’t Like Carlisle Cullen

As we learned earlier, the producers weren't big fans of Robert Pattinson at first, as they didn't see him as an attractive romantic lead. However, a new haircut, workout routine and body glitter did the trick and got all the young girls looking for an Edward Cullen type of boyfriend for themselves.

But Edward wasn't the only Cullen who didn't win the trust of the executives at first. As it turns out, Peter Facinelli, who was announced to play Carlisle, was also considered the wrong choice, but for a different reason.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Facinelli talked about how heartbroken he was when he found out he didn't get the part. The actor recalled exactly what his agent told him when he broke the unfortunate news:

“They thought maybe you look too young, you know, and they went with somebody that looked a little older.”

While that was true, and the actor did look young, that should never have been a problem for a vampire. And luckily, the universe heard the actor and he got the part in the end because another actor dropped out of the project. As viewers, we can only be happy for such a coincidence.

To join in on the celebration of 15 years of top-notch vampire love drama, you can go ahead and stream Twilight (2008) on Amazon Prime Video.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter