"Twilight" is one of the most successful film series of all time and has an obsessive fan base to this day. One of these "twihards" is Taylor Swift. The pop singer is said to have fought to get a role in the second part - but in vain.
Director Chris Weitz revealed on Twilight actress Ashley Greene's podcast "The Twilight Effect" how he once destroyed one of Taylor Swift's greatest dreams. According to this, the singer really wanted a role in the second part of the film series, "New Moon" (2009). However, she received a rebuff from Weitz.
Speaking to Greene, Weitz opened up about the 'New Moon' casting process and even surprised the 35-year-old actress by revealing that Swift's agent worked to get her in the film. "Taylor Swift and I had the same agent at the time and he said, 'Taylor would love to be in this movie - not because of you, but she's a 'Twihard'. You there will be someone in the cafeteria or the diner or whatever, but she just wants to be in this movie.'"
But Weitz would not be persuaded. "Once Taylor Swift is on screen for about five minutes, no one will be able to process anything," he told his agent. But now he's annoyed with the decision, after all he "could have hung out with Taylor Swift or maybe become friends or something."
Surely the singer wondered who "this idiot" was who "would say no. But sometimes you make decisions and say: That's the best thing for the film." Weitz also joked how ridiculous it sounds these days that Swift, in a film about vampires and werewolves fighting for the love of a mortal teenage girl, should have been the factor that "breaks the realism" for him.
On the podcast, Weitz also revealed that the studio initially considered recasting Taylor Lautner in the sequel because his character, the werewolf Jacob, "turns into a six-foot-tall monster between books one and two." While they had nothing against Lautner, the studio wasn't sure if his transformation could be realized on screen without choosing another actor.
He has Weitz to thank for the fact that Lautner kept the role, because he was "stubborn". "I said, 'No, I really like this kid and he's great,'" the director said. In addition, the actor was willing to "train incredibly hard for the film".
"New Moon" grossed more than $704 million at the box office worldwide. Overall, the five-part "Twilight" film series comes to 4.3 billion dollars.
