- The "
Twilight Saga" movie franchise grossed over $3 billion and built a fanbase of "Twihards." - When the movies came to
Netflix in July, they were among the most-watched films on the platform.
"Twilight," the 2008 film adaptation of the hit vampire book series, has once again become a pop
"Twilight," the first installment of the five-part movie franchise based on the series of the same name by Stephanie Meyer, told the love story of human Bella (Kristen Stewart) and vampire Edward (Robert Pattison). The "Twilight Saga" franchise grossed over $3 billion worldwide and built a fanbase of millions who called themselves "Twihards."
The "Twilight" fanbase's online presence was so formidable it developed several subcultures of its own. As well as being a well-established "fandom" community on blogging site Tumblr, the Today Show reported in 2009 that "Twihards" took to online platforms to write and share their own "fanfiction" based on characters from "Twilight". Fans also had a big presence on Twitter and on YouTube - where many of them would go viral by recording reaction videos to trailers for upcoming "Twilight" movies.
Now, more than a decade later, the tag #twilight has surpassed 10 billion views on TikTok, while #twilightmemes is approaching 45 million views and #twilightrenaissance has racked up over 400 million views.
Here are some of the ways TikTokers are revitalizing the "Twilight" zeitgeist.
TikTokers are reigniting the 'Twilight' fandom
"Twilight" TikTok content is a genre in itself, with some creators dedicating their entire accounts to such videos.
Cosplayer @maryalicebrandon, who goes by Alice Cullen (the name of a character from "Twilight") on TikTok has built a following of nearly half a million people by showcasing her costume, re-enacting memorable scenes from the film, and making comedic sketches based on the vampire character. Across all these videos, she has amassed over 12 million likes, with several of these clips surpassing a million views and going viral at various points this year.
TikTok comedian Yasmine Sahid has racked up nearly a million followers and over 50 million likes across all her videos following her deadpan impressions of the character Jaspar Cullen, a vampire from the movies.
@ladyyasmina1 Team Jasper #jasper #twilighttok #twilightrenaissance #halloweendecor #bellaswan #povs ♬ Supermassive Black Hole - Muse
Even some of the most high-profile online personalities have participated.
Influencer Trisha Paytas, who has 6.4 million TikTok followers and over 5 million YouTube subscribers, posted various "Twilight" TikToks this year, dressing up as Bella and mimicking her mannerisms and filming their fiancée Moses Hacmon roleplaying as werewolf Jacob Black and Edward Cullen in clips that amassed over 4 million views.
@trishlikefish88 @moseshacmon #bellawherethehellhaveyoubeenloca ♬ bella where the hell have you been loca - i love steven yeun
The trend has evolved over the past year
"Twilight," as well as being highlighted by popular TikTokers, has returned to public consciousness following new releases this past year.
In August 2020, "Midnight Sun," a novel by Meyer which recounted the events of "Twilight" from Edward's perspective, was released. It was around this time that "Twilight" content started to emerge on TikTok, although it exploded after the film series became available on Netflix this summer, dominating the streaming platform's most-viewed lists.
In 2020, "Bella's Lullaby," a song from the first film's soundtrack, started to gain traction on the platform. The song's use was popularized by former "Twilight" fans such as internet comedian Kris HC, who used it in videos re-enacting scenarios from the peak of their adolescent "Twilight" obsession, including playing an exaggerated version of their younger selves pretending to be a vampire at school.
@kallmekris They will never understand. #twilight #vampire #childhood #fyp #foryoupage ♬ Theme from "Twilight (Bella's Lullaby)" - Movie Sounds Unlimited
The "vampire baseball" scene from the first movie became a particular source of TikTok memes. The tag #twilightbaseball has over 250 million views, while the sound associated with the scene, "Super Massive Black Hole" by the band Muse, has been used in over 400,000 videos.
@brodywellmaker #fyp #twilight #teambrody ♬ Theme from "Twilight (Bella's Lullaby)" - Movie Sounds Unlimited
The most recent "Twilight" TikTok trend reimagines a scene in "New Moon" in which Jacob runs up to Bella and says, "Bella, where the hell have you been, loca?" before hugging her. This line has become a TikTok meme, with users dissecting and parodying every element of the seconds-long scene including Jacob's awkward jog, the line's slightly stilted delivery, and the use of the word "loca" - which, given the dark themes in "New Moon," some perceive as being out of place.
The tag #bellawherethehellhaveyoubeenloca has amassed nearly 30 million views and has inspired merch including T-shirts, mugs, and tote bags.
'Twilightcore' has also become a fashion trend on TikTok
"Twilight" hasn't just experienced a revival through memes - in recent months, it has become a popular aesthetic, and a growing TikTok subculture is dedicated to imitating the style of various characters in the film franchise.
To achieve a "Twilight" aesthetic, many TikTokers are taking advantage of one of the app's effects entitled "Dazzling Look," which has been used over 100,000 times and was nicknamed "the Cullen filter" by users after they noticed it gives them a glowing, golden-eyed effect that mimics the appearance of vampires in the movie.
Other people are adopting "Twilight" as style inspiration and sharing layered, khaki-colored outfit ideas inspired by the movie under tags like #twilightcore and #twilightaesthetic, which have amassed 19 million and 18 million views respectively.
For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider's Digital Culture team here.