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- How old the stars of 'Twilight' were compared to their characters' ages
How old the stars of 'Twilight' were compared to their characters' ages
Olivia Singh
- "Twilight" was released in November 2008, starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson.
- The movie is centered on 17-year-old Bella Swan falling in love with a vampire named Edward Cullen.
Kristen Stewart, then 18, starred as 17-year-old Bella Swan.
"Twilight" begins with Bella moving from Phoenix, Arizona to Forks, Washington to live with her dad.
Stewart was already an established actor when she landed the role of the "Twilight" protagonist, having starred in movies like "Panic Room" and "Into the Wild."
Robert Pattinson played Edward Cullen, who was turned into a vampire when he was 17 years old. The British actor was 22 at the time.
Technically, Edward was more than 100 years old. He was turned into a vampire in 1918 as he was on the verge of dying from Spanish influenza.
Before playing a brooding vampire in "Twilight," Pattinson starred as Cedric Diggory in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire."
At 16 years old, Taylor Lautner was close in age to his character Jacob Black, Bella's friend who had a crush on her.
Jacob was 15 in the first movie. Jacob became part of a love triangle with Bella and Edward as the franchise went on.
At the time, Lautner was known for roles in "The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D" and "Cheaper by the Dozen 2."
Billy Burke, then 41 years old, played Charlie Swan, Bella's dad.
He was a police chief in Forks and had an affinity for steaks. Charlie's age wasn't specified in "Twilight."
Before starring in the "Twilight" franchise, Burke had roles on TV shows like "Gilmore Girls," "Law & Order," and "24."
Gil Birmingham, 55, portrayed Billy Black, Jacob's dad.
He was best friends with Charlie and his age was unclear. Billy and Jacob were part of the Quileute tribe.
Before "Twilight," Birmingham guest-starred on shows like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Charmed," and "Veronica Mars."
Peter Facinelli, 34, starred as Dr. Carlisle Cullen.
Carlisle and the Cullen family distinguished themselves from other vampires because they hunted animals, not humans.
Before "Twilight," Facinelli starred in the '90s movie "Can't Hardly Wait" and the drama series "Fastlane."
Elizabeth Reaser, then 33, portrayed Esme Cullen, Carlisle's wife.
Carlisle and Esme moved from town to town every couple of years with their adoptive children to avoid suspicions about their unchanging physical appearances.
Outside of "Twilight," Reaser guest-starred on shows like "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "The Sopranos," and "Grey's Anatomy."
Ashley Greene was 21 when she played Alice Cullen, a vampire who posed as a high-school student.
Alice could see the future through visions.
Greene had only been acting professionally a couple of years before she landed the role of Alice.
Jackson Rathbone was 24 when he played Jasper Hale, the most recent addition to the Cullen family.
Jasper, also pretending to be a high schooler, could feel and manipulate people's emotions.
Nikki Reed, 20, played Rosalie Hale.
Rosalie was far less welcoming toward Bella than the rest of her family when they first met.
At the time, Reed was known for starring in the film "Thirteen." She cowrote the script with director Catherine Hardwicke, who also helmed "Twilight."
Kellan Lutz was 23 when he starred as Emmett Cullen, the most athletic member of the family who also pretended to be high-school age.
The running joke among the Cullen clan was that they accumulated a plethora of graduation caps because they repeated high school so often.
Before "Twilight" fame, Lutz guest-starred on "The Bold and the Beautiful," "CSI: NY," "Heroes," and "Generation Kill."
Cam Gigandet, 26, portrayed the villain, James.
James was a vampire who was a skilled tracker. Once he caught Bella's scent, he was determined to hunt her down. His age wasn't specified.
Before "Twilight," Gigandet played an antagonist on the hit drama series "The O.C."
Rachelle Lefevre, then 29 years old, played Victoria, another nomadic vampire from James' coven.
After Edward and the Cullens murdered James, Victoria became fixated on getting revenge by killing Bella.
Before starring in the franchise, Lefevre had roles on shows like "How I Met Your Mother," "Bones," and "Veronica Mars."
Edi Gathegi, 29, played another nomadic vampire named Laurent.
He was 300 years old.
Gathegi started acting professionally a few years before "Twilight," landing parts on "Veronica Mars," "House," and more series.
Anna Kendrick was 23 when she portrayed Jessica, Bella's self-centered friend at Forks High School.
Jessica was in the same grade as Bella, making her approximately 17 years old.
Kendrick was already a Tony Award nominee at the time, thanks to her supporting performance in the Broadway musical "High Society."
Michael Welch, 21, played Mike, another junior at Forks High School.
Mike had a crush on Bella ever since her first day of school in Forks.
Welch had been acting since the '90s, with roles on TV shows like "Frasier," "Walker, Texas Ranger," and "7th Heaven." He also played Artim in the 1998 movie "Star Trek: Insurrection."
At 27, Justin Chon (Eric) was the oldest of the actors who played Bella's human friends.
Eric considered himself the "eyes and ears" of Forks High School.
Before "Twilight," Chon appeared on a season three episode of "The O.C." and starred alongside Brenda Song in the 2006 DCOM "Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior."
Christian Serratos, 18, portrayed Angela, a shy student at Forks High School.
She was also a junior, making her around 17 years old.
At the time, Serratos was also known for her recurring role as Suzie Crabgrass on the Nickelodeon show "Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide."
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