More than anything, Chaske Spencer just wants to keep it real.

This may seem strange coming from the man who just wrapped up a multi-film stint in the massively successful fantasy-laden Twilight series, but a brief conversation with him makes this all too clear.

Take, for example, his perspective on his Twilight character, werewolf pack leader Sam Uley. While he appreciates many things about his animalistic alter-ego, not the least of which are his CGI antics played out on the big screen – “I never thought I would see myself jump off a cliff. I mean it was amazing!” he says – what he most hopes fans will take away from the most recent installments is that which makes the character most relatable – most human.

“What I got from talking to the kids, the fans of Twilight, is that a lot of them just hated Sam. A lot of them did not like Sam,” he recalls with a laugh. “So what I want to do is make him more human, more a character that you can relate to. In the Breaking Dawn film you get this sense that, in the script, he’s out to just kill Renesmee and he hates Bella, but that’s not the case. It’s just that it’s a job that he has to do.”

Similarly, Spencer notes, it’s the human element of filmmaking that has been the most rewarding through his work on the Twilight series and beyond. His bonds with cast and crew from the Twilight films have stayed strong, he assures: his fellow wolves are “like my brothers now,” he says, “and then you have Julia [Jones] and Tinsel [Korey, both costars] who are like my sisters.” It’s like “joining the circus,” he explains. “That’s basically what a film crew is. You join the circus, you all get tight, you’re like a family for a month or two, and then – boom. Maybe you’ll stay in touch, maybe you’ll see them again, maybe you won’t, you know?”

He emphasizes that this is one aspect of filmmaking that continues to draw him in – “Not just working on a character or just being an actor but the stuff behind the scenes.” It’s an affinity for the world behind the camera, bolstered by his recent experience in independent films Winter in the Blood and Desert Cathedral, that has clearly shaped his philosophy on his work and his art. An independent film, he says, is “where the artist comes into work”.

To hear him explain it, it’s answering a call to artistic integrity. He easily ticks off the names of examples and influences, a list that crosses genres and all levels of celebrity. “I grew up watching Johnny Depp,” he recalls, “and like a lot of young actors, I wanted to be Johnny Depp – and we can’t. But he inspires us to stick to artistic credit.” Depp, he notes, had a penchant for turning down big-budget roles in favor of independents, “and he got massive street cred for it.”

He’s quick to cite famous crossover acts like Nirvana and Pearl Jam as well. “I always like bands who stretch, who go further,” he says. “You could be working a 9 to 5 job, but you’re trying to find the easiest way to make a living doing what you love, and of course you’re not going to say no to those paychecks.” But, he says, these bands were able to avoid earning the dreaded “sellout” label. Of Pearl Jam, he notes, “They used the tools that they had, and they just gave themselves some self-respect, and they stuck to their guns, and, obviously, they’re a huge group. They turned down Ticketmaster, and fought the good fight, and they’re still rockin’ and rollin’, they’re still touring.”

So what does this mean for Chaske Spencer, an actor moving into 2012 with a slew of major-budget films under his belt and many of these treasured independent efforts in the works? “I enjoy work on a franchise too,” he stresses. “[You] get a good paycheck, work on a big budget. But then you go back and do an independent movie and you can make up for I guess, ah, whoring yourself out,” he laughs.

Make no mistake: he’s grateful for the opportunities that Twilight’s success has given him – especially the freedom to gravitate toward those projects that allow him to emulate those he so admires. “You’ll never hear me talk bad about ‘Twilight!’”, he assures with a laugh. “Yeah, it’s given me a life.”

Twilight’s fourth movie, Breaking Dawn Part 1, led the Friday box office once again, with $16.9 million. According to Reuters, this trend means the film will potentially earn $61 million by the end of Thanksgiving weekend. Which leads to the question, what could this $61 million otherwise go to?

Approximately

• 122,000 flights.
• 8,714,285 $7 meals.
• 1,946 priuses.
• 5,545,454 pairs of novelty vampire fangs.
• 1,220 semesters of my college tuition.

“The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1,” which premiered on Friday earned $283.5 million internationally and $139.5 million domestically for its first weekend. This amount falls behind only the second installment of the “Twilight” series franchise, “New Moon,” which premiered in 2009 with an opening of $142.8 million at home.

The first of the two parts of “Breaking Dawn” follows Bella Swan and her vampire beau, Edward Cullen, as they get married and are almost immediately faced with the impending doom of Edward’s spawn growing at a rapid rate within Bella.

This weekend’s revenues are as follows:

1. “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1,” $139.5 million
2. “Happy Feet 2,” $22 million
3. “Immortals,” $12.3 million
4. “Jack and Jill,” $12 million
5. “Puss in Boots,” $10.7 million
6. “Tower Heist,” $7 million
7. “J. Edgar,” $5.9 million
8. “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas,” $2.9 million
9. “In Time,” $1.7 million
10. “The Descendants,” $1.2 million

Some spoilers included!

At long last, the finale of the “Twilight” franchise has finally arrived onto the big screen. This time, Bill Condon (Dreamgirls in 2006) takes the hot seat of as director.

From a fangirl standpoint, this is the moment that Twilight fans have been waiting for: Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) get married, after a series of setbacks and courtships. The set design of the wedding made it a particularly romantic vibe with white flowers draping from trees and just around the garden, as well as some familiar faces; the friends and family of the bride and groom. Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) whom we see after the wedding is a happy friend for both Bella and Edward, until Bella tells him that she will remain a human when she goes on a honeymoon with Edward. Dismayed, Jacob tries to stop Bella from going with Edward as he presumes that her now husband could potentially kill her. Edward and Bella head to Rio De Janeiro, anyway, for their honeymoon.

In the two-hour duration of the film, not a lot happens. What is covered in this film is actually quite limited compared to the previous films where the movie features plenty of scenes that took place in a variety of locations. In Breaking Dawn Part 1, after Rio De Janeiro, most scenes just took place in the Cullens’ house and the forest where the werewolves can be found.

The film is all about Edward and Bella worrying about their future together as husband and wife, as the werewolves go against Bella and Jacob tries to protect his friend.

Bella eventually gets pregnant with a half vampire, half human baby. Tension arises between Edward and Jacob — again.

The bigger Bella’s womb grows, the sicker she becomes. The acting between Stewart and the rest of the Cullens can be somewhat comedic at times, and I thought that Condon executed that well. For example, the speeches at the weddings given by the bride and groom’s family friends, as well as Bella coming up with names for their future child were pretty funny scenes.

Unlike in the previous Twilight films where the werewolves’ scenes and actions were fast and furious and strongly captured in the screen, Breaking Dawn Part 1 does not really give that same effect. The werewolves were not the main focus of the film and didn’t have a ton of screen time.

The last scene in the movie shows Bella’s eyes turning red, and it brings a lot of mixed messages for the audience. The director certainly did an awesome job on this, as he keeps the viewers guessing how this will turn out in the next film.

When all is said and done, fans that have supported “The Twilight Saga” from the books to the movies will be in for a treat. As Taylor Lautner has said in a promotional interview, “if you read Breaking Dawn, you’ll most likely see it come to life on this film!”

Part one of Breaking Dawn is opening in theaters this Friday, and it highlights the series of events that lead to Bella’s inevitable transformation into a vampire. But, according to Kristen Stewart, the change is not all that glamorous.

Stewart, who has played the protagonist, Bella, in all of the film adaptations, complained about the amber-colored contacts the actors playing vampires are required to wear. She said “That is one thing I can’t wait to say goodbye to. They just kill you.”

The actress expressed her satisfaction with her character finally becoming a vampire, saying “The whole vampire thing – I wasn’t excited to be white and all that. I was really more excited to finally get her there because she wants it so bad.”

Hollywood will forever have Kristen Stewart’s black-and-white-checked pair of Vans’ footprints, right along with Robert Pattinson’s and Taylor Lautner’s marks.

The three stars of “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn,” coming out in theaters nationwide on November 18, appeared in front of fans with Jimmy Kimmel, the emcee of the event, and “Twilight” author Stephenie Meyer on November Thursday outside the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theater.

After waving to the fans craning their necks to catch a glimpse of Lautner’s muscles and Stewart and Pattinson’s relationship, the stars pressed their handprints into blocks of cement. As the ceremony came to an end, the Los Angeles Times quoted Stewart saying, “I’ve never been so enamored by this business, Hollywood. … I think this is the coolest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

The leading actors and author of the franchise took this opportunity to thank their fans for their growing support throughout the phenomenon. After today, fans can walk through the streets of Hollywood to find the hardened handprints and footprints of their idols.

As the long-lasting nationwide craze continues, the stars of the Twilight Saga are under constant scrutiny. As a result, anything Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner say about each other while out of character is recorded for fans’ viewing enjoyment. Thanks to MTV, some favorite quotes have been compiled in an easy to access format for readers.

Highlights include:

“She’s more stubborn than me in a lot of ways. She really stands up for what she thinks is right. It’s generally on the same page with what I think is right, but I never have the balls to do it.” — Rob on Kristen during “New Moon”

“She looked amazing. I really didn’t do anything much but just stand there.” — Rob on Kristen in her “Breaking Dawn” wedding dress

“I didn’t see Taylor until just a little bit before we started shooting ['New Moon']. When he came back, I had the same reaction as everybody else. I was like, ‘Jeez, now I have to go to the gym!’ ” — Rob on Taylor’s “New Moon” abs

“I don’t feel like kissing you!” — Rob to Kristen at the MTV Movie Awards

“It was really fun to see Kristen try and act all tough, and she’s a vampire and she’s chucking me across the yard into trees. It was funny.” — Taylor on Kristen throwing him around in “Breaking Dawn”

“He’s really buff! He definitely is. It took him a lot of time.” — Kristen on Taylor

“It’s just totally false … Rob and I are good friends.” — Kristen on rumored relationship with Rob

wireimage.com

Twilight fans may get to meet select cast members and hear music featured in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn at special events across the country beginning on November 7.

Stars including Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone and Ashley Greene will attend the screenings and will watch alongside the moviegoers as artists such as Christina Perri, Aqualung, Lucy Schwartz and Sleeping at Last perform songs from the movie’s sound track.

Tickets are free and go on sale at 10 am on Saturday, November 5, at each of the screening locations.

Part one of Breaking Dawn premieres on November 18.

Cathch a sneak peek of the wedding scene here!

The Schedule is as follows:

November 7, 2011: Atlanta, GA

The Buckhead Theatre

3110 Roswell Road Atlanta GA 30305

Cast Attending: Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Peter Facinelli and Jackson Rathbone

Performance By: Christina Perri

*For Atlanta event details please contact breakingdawnatl@gmail.com

November 8, 2011: Chicago, IL

House of Blues

329 N Dearborn Chicago IL 60654

Cast Attending: Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Peter Facinelli, Jackson Rathbone, Kellan Lutz and Elizabeth Reaser

Performance By: Christina Perri

*For Chicago event details please contact BreakingDawnChicago@gmail.com

November 9, 2011: Dallas, TX

The Palladium Ballroom at Gilley’s Dallas

1135 South Lamar Street

Dallas, TX 75215-1036

Cast Attending: Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Peter Facinelli and Jackson Rathbone

Performance By: Christina Perri

*For Dallas event details please contact BreakingDawn.Dallas@LandH.com

November 10, 2011:  San Francisco, CA

The Fillmore

1805 Geary Boulevard, San Francisco, CA 94115

Cast Attending: Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Peter Facinelli and Jackson Rathbone

Performances By: Aqualung, Lucy Schwartz and Sleeping atLast

*For San Francisco event details please contact BreakingDawnSanFrancisco@gmail.com

November 11, 2011:  Salt Lake City, UT

The Rail Event Center

235 N 500 W. Salt Lake City, UT 84116

Cast Attending: Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Peter Facinelli and Jackson Rathbone

Performances By: Aqualung, Lucy Schwartz and Sleeping atLast  *For Salt Lake City event details please contact breakingdawnslc@gmail.com

Robert Pattinson is set to record his first album. Pattinson has already shown some of his musical talent. He has two songs on the original “Twilight” soundtrack including “Never Think” (co-written with Sam Bradley) and “Let Me Sign.”

His music is not pop, but rather has a more guitar-based and indie sound. Pattinson plays the guitar, but is working on learning to play the piano and horns as well.

He plans to work on the album during his time off before returning to promote “Breaking Dawn.”

Source: Us Weekly

The posters for “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn” have been revealed.

In the first of two parts to finish the series: “Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson), plus those they love, must deal with the chain of consequences brought on by a marriage, honeymoon, and the tumultuous birth of a child, which brings an unforeseen and shocking development for Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner).”

The first poster features Bella and Edward locked in an embrace, while the second poster features a solitary Jacob.

Part One comes out in November.

Reuters reported Friday that Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner and other actors have been forced to evacuate when filming the upcoming “Twilight” series “Breaking Dawn” in the Vancouver Island beach area in British Columbia.

The filming has been postponed.

Tinsel Korey, who stars in the film as Makah Emily Young, emotionally tweeted Friday, “They’re evacuating us 4 a tsumnani (sic) warning. If this … is my last my tweet. I love you. The end. Hugz. If this is the moment. Then I’ve lived a good life. And I’m thankful 4 everything I’ve been given.”

The picture of the highly anticipated “Twilight: Breaking Dawn” honeymoon sex scene has been released. The picture shows Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) together on their wedding night.

Recently, Pattinson told MTV, “It’s always awkward, in a way, doing it with anybody, but at the same time … it really depends on how it’s staged and stuff. It’s like doing Twister.”

“Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1″ comes out November 18.

Video of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart shooting the “Breaking Dawn” honeymoon scene was leaked the Internet on Thursday and quickly removed.

The scene was shot in Brazil and showed that Bella and Edward kneeling on a beach and talking before making out.

But don’t you fear — or go ahead and be disappointed — because Summit Entertainment said everything will be kept PG-13.

Newcomer and youngster Mackenzie Foy has been cast as Renesmee, the daugher of Edward and Bella, in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn.”

According to the studio, “Twilight” author Stephenie Meyer sent the announcement as part of a special note to fans of the vampire saga thanking them for helping the series’s official Facebook fan page reach 15 million fans.

The announcement comes on the heals of the casting of the Denali Coven actors, allies to the Cullens in the books/films. Christian Camargo, Mia Maestro, Casey LaBow and MyAnna Buring were announced late last week, days after Maggie Grace, who was announced last Tuesday, was announced as the vampire Irina.

Christian Camargo, Mia Maestro, Casey LaBow and MyAnna Buring can now claim a big milestone on their resumes: “Twilight.”

The actors were added to the cast on Thursdays. The Denalis are another “vegetarian” coven who are friends with the Cullens.

Camargo (“The Hurt Locker, “Dexter”) will play Eleazar, a Spanish vampire and former member of the Volturi. Maestro (“Alias) will play Carmen, a multi-lingual vampire who’s Eleazar’s mate. LaBow will play Kate, who can create powerful electrical currents under her skin. Buring (“Doomsday”) will play Tanya, the head of the coven. Tanya once had a crush on Edward.

The actors are relatively unknown. LaBow has done mostly guest appearances, and MTV spelled her name wrong in their coverage, unless she spells Casey with a “K” sometimes. Buring is a Swede who trained to be an actress in London. Carmargo played John Wilkes Booth in the “National Treasure” sequel.

The four join Maggie Grace, who was announced on Tuesday. She will play Irina, who does something bad in the book…

The release dates for the two final “Twilight” films are November 18, 2011 and November 16, 2012.

Maggie Grace has been cast in the role of Irina in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn,” the final chapter in the Bella Swan vampire saga based on the Stephenie Meyer novels.

Irina is a vampire but doesn’t feast on human blood, and also is a cousin of the Cullens and happens to be a bit bitter over the death of her lover. Her skin sparkles in the sun in a way that puts basic body glitter to shame. She is a member of the Denali coven, and she blames the Cullens for her lover’s death.

Grace, 27, played Shannon Rutherford in the first two seasons of "Lost."

In the meantime, Mackenzie Foy, a 9-year-old actress with no feature film experience, is close to taking the role of Renesmee, Edward and Bella’s vampire/human love child, according to EW.com.

Hot news: “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn” will hit theaters on November 16, 2012.

“Directed by Bill Condon, the astonishing conclusion to the series illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions,” the studio said in a statement.

We know that “Eclipse” is still in theaters, but here’s some news on “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn” from the studio:

Summit Entertainment’s THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN will be filmed in both Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Vancouver over the next year starting this fall. The next chapter of THE TWILIGHT SAGA will be released as two separate films with the first of the two slated to be released in theatres on November 18, 2011.

Academy Award winner Bill Condon will direct both films starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner along with Billy Burke as Charlie Swan as well as returning members of the Cullen Family including Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Jackson Rathbone as Jasper, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, Ashley Greene as Alice and Kellan Lutz as Emmett.

The project, based on the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, is currently being written by Melissa Rosenberg with Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt and Stephenie Meyer producing.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions.

The third film in the franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE, is currently in theaters.

Summit Entertainment has confirmed that Academy Award winner Bill Condon will direct “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn,” based on the fourth novel in Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series.

“Breaking Dawn’s” screenplay is being written by Melissa Rosenberg and will bring back Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner. Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt, and Meyer will produce the film.

“Bringing Stephenie Meyer’s ‘Breaking Dawn’ to the screen requires a graceful and intelligent hand and we believe Bill Condon is exactly the right steward, having shown equal and abundant talents of immense creativity and subtle sensitivity," said Erik Feig, President of Production and Acquisitions, for Summit Entertainment.

Added author Stephenie Meyer, “I’m so thrilled that Bill wants to work with us. I think he’s going to be a great fit, and I’m excited to see what he does with the material.”

"I’m very excited to get the chance to bring the climax of this saga to life on-screen. As fans of the series know, this is a one-of-a-kind book – and we’re hoping to create an equally unique cinematic experience,” said Bill Condon.

Condon has directed “Dreamgirls,” “Kinsey,” and “Gods and Monsters,” for which we won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1999. He was nominated for a second Oscar in 2003 for “Chicago.”

“Eclipse,” the third Twilight film, hits theaters June 30.

Dakota Fanning stopped to chat with Blast tonight as she headed to the world premier of her new film “The Runaways.” Fanning stars alongside Kristen Stewart (“Twilight”) as Cherie Currie, lead singer of the legendary band The Runaways. Below is a snippet of our conversation with Fanning — check back Friday for the full interview with the cast of “The Runaways” as well as Joan Jett and Cherie Currie.

Melissa Unger contributed to this story.

It’s hard not to notice Kellan Lutz when he walks into a room. Unlike the vampire, Emmett Cullen, that he plays in “Twilight,” it’s not because of his icy, pale skin or his alternately gold or black eyes. Kellan fills up a room with the warm, jovial personality he shares with his famous blood-sucking character.

But don’t take our word for it. Just ask the teenage girls who waited for hours-upon-end this weekend just to get a glimpse of him as he passed through the Natick Collection on his “New Moon” mall tour. Even without the appeal of his co-star Ashley Greene (“She’s my best friend,” he said), who was supposed to join him (her appearance was cancelled), Lutz, with his blue eyes and movie star smile, had no trouble filling a mall with screeching “Twi-hards” a week before the release of “New Moon.”

But just a few hours before the Natick Collection madness began, Kellan, dressed in black from head to toe, capped off with brightly bleached hair (it’s jet black in “Twilight”) sat down with Blast and a few other reporters to talk about sudden fame, snowboarding and making fun of co-star Kristen Stewart.

Like many of the actors in “Twilight,” Lutz was just another struggling actor before his role in the vampire series thrust him into the spotlight. With a few parts here and there, he wasn’t unknown, but the “Twilight” phenomenon brought him and many of his cast mates unprecedented fame.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you know that Lutz plays a lovable, bulky vegetarian vampire in “Twilight” who likes to play off of his more serious, sparkly brother, Edward. Edward is caught in a tricky situation with a human girlfriend named Bella and his overwhelming desire to have her for lunch. Talk about a rock and a hard place.

Those who have seen the movie might not be able to picture Lutz in any other role, though he says it came very close to being that way. Initially, he was offered an audition for the part of Edward, the pensive, pining bloodthirsty lead.

“I had just gotten back from doing ‘Generation Kill,’” Lutz said, “which was seven months in Africa portraying Marines killing people. I did not want to play a depressed, complex character like Edward. And my agent’s like ‘It’s gonna be huge!’ and I’m like ‘Cool!’ *click* (simulates hanging up a phone).”

But thanks to that persistent agent and a change of perspective, Lutz found his way to playing Emmett Cullen, who he claims he is more suited for.

“He’s this happy-go-lucky guy with no fears,” Lutz said with a gleaming smile. “He’s indestructible. He’s this monster. And he just laughs, cause nothing can hurt him…and he just makes fun of Bella.”

Fans of the books know that Emmett Cullen spends most of his time finding ways to poke fun at the saga’s clumsy, red-faced heroine Bella Swan, played in the films by Kristen Stewart. Lutz brought that spirit to the set of “New Moon” and “Eclipse” by ribbing Stewart whenever he got the chance.

“I do!” Lutz said when asked if he liked making fun of people on set. “Especially Kristen…we had some great scenes in ‘Eclipse,’ and it’s fun just hanging out with her, ’cause she’s just such a free bird. Saying the funny lines that my character gets to say and having her laugh when she’s not supposed to…(she’d say) ‘You guys, we gotta go again!’ She’s adorable.”

Lutz shared about a specific scene in Eclipse where, though she tried, Stewart couldn’t keep a straight face due to Lutz’s humor.

“There’s a scene when Bella hurts her arm because she hits Jacob,” Lutz said, “and so Jasper and I walk in, and I say some really funny comments. She tried to go tit-for-tat with the humor, (but) she just kept on laughing.”

Lutz, Stewart and the rest of the ensemble cast for “Twilight” have been working together for two years, giving them time to develop a rapport. But critics wondered if that chemistry would be altered when the decision was made to find a new director for the second film, “New Moon.” Once the success of the franchise became apparent after the release of “Twilight” ( “It opened so high that they greenlit it the next day, which was amazing,” Lutz said) the sequels were put on the fast-track to release.

“Twilight” Director Catherine Hardwicke declined to direct “New Moon,” claiming she would need more time to prepare than the studio would allow. Director Chris Weitz (“About A Boy,” “American Pie”) was quickly brought in, and the Twilight world waited with baited breath to see if he could recreate the magic in “New Moon” that Hardwicke had brought to “Twilight.”

Lutz said that the two directors had very different styles, but each suited the story they told. “Twilight” had to make a vampire love story not only realistic, but compelling, and Lutz said Hardwicke succeeded in making that happen.

“‘Twilight’ is an artsy movie, and Catherine had just such a great independent style,” Lutz said. “She really captured the beauty of what ‘Twilight’ is.”

“New Moon,” which details the heartrending loss of first love, called for a melancholy tone, which Lutz said Weitz was perfect for. “(Weitz is) so chill. He’s so easygoing,” Lutz said. “It didn’t feel like work.”

In “New Moon,” much to the fans’ dismay, Lutz and the rest of the Cullens disappear for awhile, acting in Bella’s best interest.

“All us Cullens wish we could be in that movie so much more,” Lutz said. “But we can’t because we’re sticking really close to the book. And we’re in the movie for the really crucial scenes, but we disappear. We go away for Bella’s safety.”

Now, before the second movie has even been released, the third one is on its way — and yes, there’s yet another director. David Slade (“30 Days of Night”) is following Weitz’s tear-tinged “New Moon” with an edgier “Eclipse,” which just wrapped filming.

In “Eclipse,” the Cullens are back…along with some werewolves, some angry vampires and a very clumsy Bella. This makes for a lot of fight scenes, which are Lutz’s forte.

“In ‘Eclipse,’ I worked so much doing fight training,” Lutz said. “My character’s there for all the action.”

But Lutz wanted to make sure he got in on the real action on set.

“I nagged and nagged and nagged so I could do all my stunts,” he said. “And I was so annoying that finally — I’ve been annoying for the past two years trying to do my stunts — they finally allowed me to do a lot of my own stunts, which is great. ‘Cause whenever I can do that, I put 150 percent into it, versus stunt guys who get paid, you know, to not get hurt. They don’t wanna get hurt, ’cause that’s their job, so they do it, like, 145 percent. I just enjoy doing them. They’re fun to me. I’m a thrill seeker. I like taking risks and getting hurt.”

There’s one film left to make in the series, but Lutz expressed concern that “Breaking Dawn” may never make it to the big screen. Contrary to the pacing of the first three films, Lutz said all of the actors are killing time while the studio has yet to release the names of potential directors, release dates or any other plans for the film.

“We aren’t filming it,” Lutz said. “There’s no word. It’s a real bummer because when we did ‘Twilight,’ we always hoped to continue on with the book series.”

With the success of the franchise came more big-name actors, like Michael Sheen and Dakota Fanning. Lutz said he fears that if the studio doesn’t move fast, they’ll lose their cast to other projects, putting the “Twilight” saga on hold.

“Us actors are having offers for tons of stuff now,” Lutz said. “To get the…actors that are a part of this — the Volturi, the wolves, the Cullens, that’s a lot of actors to just say months before we shoot, ‘Hey, can you guys come do this movie?’ ‘Cause we don’t have contracts. Versus the first three films we were all under contract. So nothing’s telling us ‘hold these dates.’ There’s only a small time frame that we could shoot…because of weather. So I hope they make their mind (up) after ‘New Moon’ comes out.”

Lutz said the determination of the film’s future might be in the hands of “Twilight” fans.

“I think it really matters for the fans,” he said. “If they come out and support ‘New Moon’ like they did ‘Twilight,’ and then ‘Eclipse.’ Because we all want to finish this baby. It’s such a part of us and it would just seem empty not to finish the last chapter.”

Lutz also addressed the rumor that “Breaking Dawn,” the longest novel in the saga, might be filmed in two parts.

“I’d hope that they’d want to shoot it all,” he said, “cause it’s such a big book. If they were to split it…there’s not really a clear line. I feel like if you did three fourths of the book and then the last part or something…but I think they would have to shoot it all in one push. Five months worth. But if they don’t greenlight it…”

Portraying a playful vampire and joking around on set makes Lutz’s job sound pretty ideal. It becomes clear, though, that it’s not all fun and games as he described his taxing tour schedule.

“Definitely the hard part,” he said, “is just getting on the airplane and trying to find time to sleep.”

Hopping back and forth between the East and West Coasts and getting three to four hours of sleep on average, Lutz said he relies on the love and support of the fans to sustain him.

“Definitely meeting the fans and the energy that they bring really keeps you going,” he said.

Due to the series’ instant popularity, its stars, and by default, Lutz, instantly lost much of their privacy to the persistent clicks of paparazzi cameras following their every move. Lutz initially didn’t have it as bad as his co-stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, but it wasn’t long before a photo surfaced of him, shirtless, exercising in his own gym.

“Being a part of ‘Twilight,’” he said, “definitely opened my eyes to how nuts it is to be a named actor and have paparazzi follow you and crash their cars trying to get pictures of you. And all you can do is be like, ‘Ha ha. Karma.’”

But the sudden fame will have no lasting effect on his life, Lutz claims. He said he plans on using it to pursue his acting dreams, but nothing else.

“You know, I’m not here to become famous or to be a millionaire,” he said. “I’m just very passionate. You know, I might have to do my hair before I go out more,” Lutz said. “(But) I’m not gonna let anything change me. I think fame or whatever it is we have changes the people around you. And as long as you stay true to yourself, everyone else will get a wakeup call and you’ll find out who your real friends are and who’s in it to get something else out of you.”

Lutz told us that though he enjoys his work, he’s eager to get home after the press tour to spend some time with none other than his mother for the holidays.

“My mom’s very traditional,” he said, “and puts up lights and cooks great meals with little cookies…it’s just great to be with family. I feel like a little kid when I go home. I have a little stocking full of, you know, candy. It’s great.”

He said he also looks forward to fitting in one of his favorite pastimes over the holiday season — snowboarding.

“I have my season pass in California,” Lutz said. “I bring my dog in my truck, and throw my boards in the back. It’s a piece of crap truck. But it’s my baby. I love it.”

Look for Kellan Lutz in “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” which hits theaters this Friday.

In a recent interview with Blast and other reporters, “Twilight” star Kellan Lutz revealed that there are no current plans to film the final chapter in the “Twilight” saga, “Breaking Dawn.”

The first three films have been made, but Lutz expressed the fear that if “New Moon” doesn’t get enough love from the fans, “Breaking Dawn” might never get made, leaving the saga permanently unfinished.

“We aren’t filming it,” Lutz said when asked about the progress on “Breaking Dawn.”

“It’s a real bummer,” he said, “because when we did ‘Twilight,’ we always hoped to continue on with the book series. Like you saw with ‘Aragon’ — the fans didn’t support it enough, so they didn’t make the sequel, which would suck.”

Some may find it hard to believe the the cultural phenomenon that is “Twilight” wouldn’t have enough fan power to propel the series to completion. But with no word from the studio and no actors under contract, “Breaking Dawn” falling through could become a real possibility.

“There’s no word on ‘Breaking Dawn.’ They said goodbye to all the crew in Vancouver,” Lutz said. “Like, a real goodbye.”

The actors of “Twilight” were under contract for the first three films in the saga. But with “New Moon,” the cast expanded, enveloping several big-name actors, including Michael Sheen and Dakota Fanning. Suddenly, due to the popularity of the series, the actors of “Twilight” have rapidly filling schedules and less time to wait on studio decisions.

“Between ‘New Moon’ and ‘Eclipse’ I did three films,” Lutz said. “Us actors are having offers for tons of stuff now. To get the…actors that are a part of this — the Volturi, the wolves, the Cullens — that’s a lot of actors to just say, months before we shoot, ‘Hey, can you guys come do this movie?’ Because we don’t have contracts for it. So nothing’s telling us, you know, ‘Hold these dates.’ And there’s only a small time frame that we could shoot in…because of weather. So I hope they make their mind (up) after ‘New Moon’ comes out.”

In the end, Lutz said that it’s all up to the fans.

“We all fell in love with our characters,” he said, “all hoping that you know, we could continue on…it really matters for the fans, if they come out and support ‘New Moon.’ Because we all want to finish this baby. It’s such a part of us, and it would just seem empty not to finish the last chapter.”

“New Moon,” the sequel to the teenage vampire love drama that’s swept the world with its undying popularity, is selling more tickets on Fandango than any other movie, including all of the currently released films.

In a recent study, Fandango found that “New Moon,” which doesn’t open until November 20, accounted for 37 percent of its recent ticket sales, beating out “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” which had 36 percent and “The Informant!,” which only had 9 percent. “Jennifer’s Body,” raked in 4 percent of sales.

Speaking of “Jennifer’s Body,” Fandango polled users, asking “Which role would you most like to see Megan Fox play?” Thirty-two percent of responders said they want to see the sexy star play Wonder Woman, while 30 percent said Catwoman. But what’s most astonishing is that 13 percent answered “Bella in ‘Breaking Dawn.’” Thirteen percent of polled moviegoers want to see Kristen Stewart get the boot.

So it’s been common knowledge for a while that “Eclipse” the third installment of the “Twilight” saga, will definitely make it to the big screen; however, there has been some speculation about “Breaking Dawn” the fourth and final book.

Although it has been mentioned by the cast, and rumored around the Internet, Summit Entertainment has not confirmed anything yet. However, Summit recently sent out an open casting call for the roles of Seth and Leah Clearwater in “Eclipse” inviting actors and actresses to send in audition tapes reading the given scenes. The scenes clearly portray plot lines from “Breaking Dawn.” Are you thinking what we’re thinking?

Take a look at the casting call, as well as the scenes, and let us know what you think.

On August 30, Stephenie Meyer posted a notice on her official website saying that someone close to her who she had given an early draft of her upcoming novel, “Midnight Sun,” had leaked it onto the internet. “It has taken me a while to decide how and if I could respond. But to end the confusion, I’ve decided to make the draft available [on her website],” she said in her statement. “This way, my readers don’t have to feel they have to make a sacrifice to stay honest.”

“So where does this leave Midnight Sun? My first feeling was that there was no way to continue,” she wrote. “In any case, I feel too sad about what has happened to continue working on Midnight Sun, and so it is on hold indefinitely.”

After reading the draft of “Midnight Sun” that was posted, I only have three words for Ms. Meyer: Please finish it.

For those readers who are not familiar with the concept of the novel, “Midnight Sun” is a rewrite of Meyer’s first novel, “Twilight,” from its hero’s perspective: Edward instead of Bella. She has even said before that, once she started writing “Midnight Sun,” she realized that she should have told the story from Edward’s perspective all along. She was right.

What made “Twilight” so interesting was the dynamic between Edward and Bella. Edward was torn between his “wants” for Bella; he was in love with her, and yet he wanted to kill her. In “Twilight,” the reader got a confusing take on his confusion from Bella. She was unsure of his emotions and reactions towards her, and so were we. Did he want to kiss her or kill her? Was it lust or bloodlust?

“Midnight Sun” clears those up. Finally, the enigma that is Edward begins to make sense. Sure, the novel remains about a third completed (the draft is only 264 pages long), but even only telling the story until the drive home after the tense Biology Movie Class Scene, so many puzzle pieces fell into place: What Edward did when he went North to escape Bella. Edward’s hand in Angela and Ben’s relationship. Edward’s real excuse for following Bella to Port Angeles. The extent of Edward’s love for Bella, and the explanation behind it.

Sure, Edward still is a creepy stalker who can’t get enough of watching Bella sleep, but it works because we have an explanation for it. Just like writing Bella’s pregnancy in “Breaking Dawn” from Jacob’s perspective led to some confusion and irritation over Bella’s motives for giving birth to what Jacob thought was a monster, writing “Twilight” from Bella’s perspective led to confusion and harsh claims against Edward’s character. Edward’s perspective is much more fun than it should be as it shows how he rediscovers his 17-year-old side after being trapped in the same body for almost a century. And that includes hormones.

While Edward’s voice is a lot more interesting than Bella’s (and significantly less annoying), “Midnight Sun” is still very much a chick read. I can’t see 14 to 21 year old boys going to a book store and wanting to swoon over Edward’s endless monologue about his love for Bella, but anyone who enjoyed the Twilight saga will definitely enjoy this installment.

The part of “Midnight Sun” that was the most fun was reading everyone’s minds (except Bella, of course) alongside Edward. Meyer is able to include scenes that Edward was unable to see by having him watch it from someone else’s perspective. It is fun to see how all the pieces that were missing from “Twilight” fall into place, and of course we don’t have the same frustration Edward has because if a reader wants to know how Bella is feeling, they can just flip to that scene in “Twilight.”

It is almost funny to see how Edward’s bias of Bella is almost as severe as Bella’s is of him. To Bella, Edward is the most attractive, perfect man in the realm of existence. To Edward, no one else can anywhere near compare to how delicate, pretty, and selfless Bella is. Seeing their views of one another makes it clearer that the “perfection” they find in each other is mostly their mutual love and a decent percentage exaggerated.

“Midnight Sun” is nothing more than a companion piece; don’t think that you can just skip over the Twilight saga and just start from Edward’s perspective because there are a lot of missing details that were explained in previous books and did not need to be explained again. For example, Peter and Charlotte are introduced early on in “Midnight Sun,” while Bella did not know that they existed until “Eclipse.” “Midnight Sun” is a fun way for Twilight fans to re-explore the universe that they had come to love in a new way, a way that will lead to many, many “Oh, well that makes more sense” moments.

So please, Stephanie, please finish writing “Midnight Sun.” After all, you can’t leave us hanging by not sharing The Meadow Scene from Edward’s perspective with us.

Jacob Black is perhaps the funniest of all of the Twilight characters, and his and Rosalie’s verbal sparring in “Breaking Dawn” is a perfect example of that. In honor of its humor, Blast has picked out our top 10 favorite Jacob and Rosalie moments from “Breaking Dawn”. These scenes are only taken from book two as it was from Jacob’s perspective and far more cynical because of that. Feel free to post your own favorite Jacob/ Rosalie moments, but remember, this article is our opinion only.

10 – “Breaking Dawn” page 278

I groaned and opened my eyes. The skies were dull gray — it was daytime, but no clue as to when. Maybe close to sunset — it was pretty dark.

“About time,” Blondie mumbled from not too far away. “The chainsaw impersonation was getting a little tired.”

9 – “Breaking Dawn” page 186

“We’re going to let Jacob and Bella speak privately,” Edward said. [...]

“Over my pile of ashes,” Rosalie hissed at him.

8 – “Breaking Dawn” page 178

“So take the blonde out first. Your kind can be put back together, right? Turn her into jigsaw and take care of Bella.”

7 – “Breaking Dawn” page 247

“You’re scared of Leah, but you’re best buds with the psychopathic blonde?”

There was a low hiss from the second floor. Cool, she’d heard me.

6 – “Breaking Dawn” page 295

“Hey, do you know what you call a blonde with a brain?” I asked, and then continued on the same breath, “a golden retriever.”

“I’ve heard that one, too,” she said, no longer smiling.

“I’ll keep trying,” I promised [...].

5 – “Breaking Dawn” page 294

“Enjoy, mongrel.”

It had once probably been a big mixing bowl, but she’d bent the bowl back in on itself until it was shaped almost exactly like a dog dish. I had to be impressed with her quick craftsmanship. And her attention to detail. She’d scratched the word Fido into the side. Excellent handwriting.

4 – “Breaking Dawn” page 294

“Rosalie, why don’t you get Jacob something from the kitchen?” Alice said. [...]

Rosalie stared at the place Alice’s voice had come from in disbelief.

“Thanks, anyways, Alice, but I don’t think I’d want to eat something Blondie’s spit in. I’d bet my system wouldn’t take too kindly to venom.”

“Rosalie would never embarrass Esme by displaying such a lack of hospitality.”

“Of course not,” Blondie said in a sugar-sweet voice that I immediately distrusted. She got up and breezed out of the room.

Edward sighed.

“You’d tell me if she poisoned it, right?” I asked.

3 – “Breaking Dawn” page 271

“You know how to drown a blonde, Rosalie?” I asked without stopping or turning to look at her. “Glue a mirror to the bottom of a pool.” [...]

“I’ve already heard that one,” Rosalie called after me.

2 – “Breaking Dawn” page 324

“Have you heard this one, Psycho? How do a blonde’s brain cells die?”

She didn’t say anything.

“Well?” I asked. “Do you know the punch line or not?”

She looked pointedly at the TV and ignored me.

“Has she heard it?” I asked Edward.

There was no humor in his tense face — he didn’t move his eyes from Bella. But he said, “No.”

“Awesome. So you’ll enjoy this, bloodsucker — a blonde’s brain cells die alone.”

Rosalie still didn’t look at me. “I have killed a hundred times more often than you have, you disgusting beast. Remember that.”

1 – “Breaking Dawn” page 304

Silently, I lifted my doggy bowl off the floor. Then, with a quick, powerful flip of my wrist, I threw it into the back of Blondie’s head so hard that — with an earsplitting bang – it smashed flat before it ricocheted across the room and snapped the round top piece off the thick newel post at the foot of the stairs. [...]

“Dumb blonde,” I muttered.

Rosalie turned her head slowly, and her eyes were blazing.

“You. Got. Food. In. My. Hair.”

Blast does not own “Breaking Dawn” or any other of Stephenie Meyer’s works.

Kellen Rice, one of the Blast’s writers and a regular contributor to Blast’s PSA: Politics, Sports, Anything Blog recently picked up and read the entire Twilight series.

She did not like it. No, ma’am, not one bit.

“Thankfully, the ‘Twilight’ series is over. Not as great is the fact that millions of girls are reading this sexist tripe without a care in the world, obsessing over the "perfect" Edward Cullen and the "hot" Jacob Black, pretending to be Bella Swan and ignoring the unhealthiness of the relationship just as successfully as the character does. What happened that two hundred years after feminist hero Elizabeth Bennet is put down on the page, we get one of the most awful excuses for a female literary hero that I’ve ever seen?”

Take a read: PSA Blog.

THERE ARE “BREAKING DAWN” SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW. IF YOU DO NOT WANT THE NOVEL TO BE RUINED FOR YOU, PLEASE STOP READING.

There were certain things about “Twilight” and its sequels that made people love it. That made people say, ‘Hey, it may say it’s about vampires, but it’s not. It’s about the most amazing love story ever told.’ There were certain aspects, like Bella’s relatability and her teenage confusions that made people of all ages adore her.

“Breaking Dawn” doesn’t tell that story.

There are mentions of Bella’s high school friends, and a handful of them even appear for a dialogue-less scene in the first 50 pages of the book, but they, like any anchor to the feel of the earlier novels, seem to disappear in the opening scenes. “Breaking Dawn” is a vampire novel in a series that really wasn’t.

When you go to hunt down a copy of Stephenie Meyer’s final installment to her (definitely going to be) on-going vampire saga, don’t worry about not having finished its second and third episodes; “New Moon” and “Eclipse”. Meyer once stated that “Breaking Dawn” was going to be very similar to her original and unpublished sequel to “Twilight”; “Forever Dawn”, and she was right. The events of “New Moon” and “Eclipse” have barely a paragraph of relevance to the entire 754-page giant that is “Breaking Dawn”.

It definitely draws one thing from its predecessors though, and that is the reader having to wait until the last 100 pages for a plot to appear. We saw this in “Twilight”, but the 400 pages of Bella and Edward falling in love was totally worth only the last fifth of the book being about the nomads. (Besides, there were two more books after that to finish off their story). In “Breaking Dawn”, it takes until page 360 for anything exciting to occur, until page 543 for a plot to emerge, and until page 679 for the battle scene that never actually happens. Oh, and then they live happily ever after.

With “Twilight”, I didn’t realize I was almost done with the book and nothing had happened because I cared. Bella and Edward? Amazing! Their chemistry and their passion and their confusion… I gobbled it up. Obviously. The biggest problem with “Breaking Dawn” is how hard it was to care about the characters that we all fell in love with.

The first and foremost (and previously mentioned) reason is that Bella is no longer a relatable character. She is 18 and she gets married. And then has a baby. And then becomes a vampire. I am 19. I am not married, nor pregnant, nor a vampire.

Therefore, I cannot empathize with Bella in Book 2 of “Breaking Dawn” (from Jacob’s perspective) when we watch Bella slowly killing herself while everyone sits around and watches her be a stubborn idiot. There are literally 200 pages of this! Bella has made decisions in previous installments that are hard to wrap the mind around, but at least then the story is from Bella’s perspective so the reader is slightly biased. But having to watch Bella make more seemingly stupid decisions from someone (Jacob) who sees them also as being stupid decisions… let’s just say I know quite a few people who put the book down then.

The driving force behind the success of the Twilight series is the relationship between Bella and Edward. It is beautiful – perfect in its imperfections. “Breaking Dawn” should have been the culmination of these feelings, but it wasn’t; its second big mistake. Here was Meyer’s perfect opportunity to have everything be perfect. We have a wedding, a honeymoon, and a baby.

The wedding was cute, but didn’t have much depth. There is some sign of the undeniable happiness between Edward and Bella as they both got the unbreakable union they so deeply craved for but it still felt like it was lacking. It seemed like Meyer was just racing through it until she could get to…

The honeymoon started off perfect. Bella and Edward, for lack of a better term, did it. Finally. But, of course, there is a problem. Although the passion is of course, breathtaking, Edwards, um, strength, leaves bruises all over Bella, which ruins his mood and makes him the emo-for-a-lame-reason-Edward that we have all learned to love. But even the honeymoon zips by as…

Bella discovers she is pregnant!

And then it’s Jacob being miserable, watching Bella make stupid decisions. This has been mentioned above, and then (we are half way through the book now), Jacob imprints and Bella has her baby/becomes a vampire.

Bella becoming a vampire was the surprising high point of the novel. She seems to be meant to be a vampire, which sort of explains why she has always been on the ‘AM’ frequency. And, luckily for us all, her desire for Edward is greater than before, so we get treated to a few steamy scenes that had been missing during the first half of the novel. They still felt a little lackluster, though; Bella didn’t faint.

Oh, and her baby is adorable, but that’s for you the reader to discover.

The connection between Edward and Bella has always been deep; so deep, in fact, that the reader can feel its pulsing life throughout the entirety of the novels. “Breaking Dawn” suffered from the same affliction its heroine did: blood no longer pulses through its veins.

Another let-down is the hype of Team Edward versus Team Jacob. There was no fight. Jacob imprinted (which we all knew had to happen regardless), but then it was like poof – there was never another mention of Jacob’s two-and-a-half-books long unquenchable and unchangeable love for Bella. Come on, Stephenie Meyer.

Finally a plot emerges involving the only sort-of enemies from the previous two (ignored) books, the Volturi. There is way too much about vampires here, and in some parts I felt I was reading an Ann Rice fiction novel instead of one of Stephenie Meyer’s fluffy young adult romances. Things get interesting for a bit, and then “Breaking Dawn” ends the way it had to. Happily.

Part of the problem is that Meyer seems to have had a switch in focus as to who her favorite person is, much like Bella does. It’s no longer all about how perfect Edward is, but rather how amazing Bella and Edward’s daughter, Renesmee, is. It can only be assumed that the implied sequels-from-other-perspectives (excluding “Midnight Sun”, which is “Twilight” from Edward’s perspective) will be about her. There was way too much set up about her future to be ignored.

I too was convinced that Bella and Edward’s story is old news. The problem was, I was convinced that a little more than half way through “Breaking Dawn”. This was supposed to be their grand, final chapter, but if anything it was the worst of the entire series.

The amount of a letdown that “Breaking Dawn” was slightly overshadowed the fact that there were good parts to the book as well. Bella and Edward finally can be happy together. The angst is over. The love is complete. That was heart-warming.

And “Breaking Dawn” was a good book, it’s just that something better was expected. Something amazing. Something that took my breath away.

In the end, “Breaking Dawn” felt kind of like a muffin bottom. You don’t really want to eat it because you know it doesn’t taste as good as the muffin top, but you know if you don’t just finish it you’re going to stay hungry for a long, long time.

These are some of the greatest moments of Stephenie Meyer’s series. If you have not yet read “Breaking Dawn”, the fourth novel in the series, and do not want to read any spoilers, please do not continue reading this. If not, enjoy!

10 – The end of “Breaking Dawn”

“‘We have plenty of time to work on it,’ I reminded him.

‘Forever and forever and forever,’ he murmured.

‘That sounds exactly right to me.’

And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever.”

9 - Bella and Edward’s first ever kiss from “Twilight”

“I couldn’t breathe.

He hesitated – not in the normal way, the human way.

Not the way a man might hesitate before he kissed a woman, to gauge her reaction, to see how he would be received. Perhaps he would hesitate to prolong the moment, that ideal moment of anticipation, sometimes better than the kiss itself.

Edward hesitated to test himself, to see if this was safe, to make sure he was still in control of his need.

And then his cold, marble lips pressed very softly against mine.”

8 – Jacob imprints from “Breaking Dawn”

“My jerking came to a stop; heat flooded through me, stronger than before, but it was a new kind of heat – not a burning.

It was a glowing.

Everything inside me came undone as I stared at the tiny porcelain face of the half-vampire, half-human baby. [...] The gravity of the earth no longer tied me to the place where I stood.

It was the baby girl in the blond vampire’s arms that held me here now.”

7 – The cliff jump in “New Moon”

“I smiled and raised my arms straight out, as if I were going to dive, lifting my face into the rain. But it was too ingrained from years of swimming at the public pool – feet first, first time. I leaned forward, crouching to get more spring…

And I flung myself from the cliff.”

6 – Bella first sees Edward in “Twilight”

“It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with seven curious strangers, that I first saw them.

They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room. There were five of them. [...] The last was lanky, less bulky, with untidy, bronze-colored hair. He was more boyish than the others, who looked like they could be in college, or even teachers here rather than students.

[...]‘That’s Edward. He’s gorgeous, of course, but don’t waste your time. He doesn’t date. Apparently none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him.’ She sniffed, a clear case of sour grapes. I wondered when he’d turned her down.”

5 - The wedding from “Breaking Dawn”

“I didn’t realize I was crying until it was time to say the binding words.

‘I do,’ I managed to choke out in a nearly unintelligible whisper, blinking my eyes clear so I could see his face.

When it was his turn to speak, the words rang clear and victorious.

‘I do,’ he vowed.”

4 - Bella’s first kiss with Edward as a vampire in “Breaking Dawn”

“It was like he’d never kissed me – like this was our first kiss. And in truth, he’d never kissed me this way before.

It almost made me feel guilty. Surely I was in breach of the contract. I couldn’t be allowed to have this, too.”

3 - Bella punches Jacob in “Eclipse”

“Finally, he let go of my face and leaned away.

‘Are you done now?’ I asked in an expressionless voice.

‘Yes,’ he sighed. He started to smile, closing his eyes.

I pulled my arm back and then let it snap forward, punching him in the mouth with as much power as I could force out of my body.

There was a crunching sound.

‘Ow! OW!’ I screamed, frantically hopping up and down in agony while I clutched my hand to my chest. It was broken, I could feel it.

Jacob stared at me in shock. ‘Are you alright?’

‘No, dammit! You broke my hand!‘”

2 – The meadow scene from “Twilight”

“‘Isabella.’ He pronounced my full name carefully, then playfully ruffled my hair with his free hand. A shock ran through my body at his casual touch. ‘Bella, I couldn’t live with myself if I ever hurt you. You don’t know how it’s tortured me.’ [...] He lifted his glorious, agonized eyes to mine. ‘You are the most important thing to me now. The most important thing to me ever.’”

1 – The tent scene from “Eclipse”

“‘Please!’ Edward hissed. ‘Do you mind!’

‘What?’ Jacob whispered back, his tone surprised.

‘Do you think you could attempt to control your thoughts?’ Edward’s low whisper was furious.

‘No one said you had to listen,’ Jacob muttered, defiant, yet still embarrassed. ‘Get out of my head.’

‘I wish I could. You have no idea how loud your little fantasies are. It’s like you’re shouting them at me.’

‘I’ll try to keep it down,’ Jacob whispered sarcastically.”

SAN DIEGO — It was 10 o’clock Wednesday night and the San Diego Convention Center had just closed down the Comic-con festivities for the night, and yet mothers were setting up sleeping bags on the sidewalk as their daughters settled under blankets, snacking on chips.

When asked what they could possibly be waiting for outside the entrance to the convention center’s massive Hall H entrance, the reply was unanimous.

“Twilight.”

They would wait 16 more hours.

“Twilight” was released in 2005, and has spawned two sequels: “New Moon” and “Eclipse.” Collectively, the series has sold more than 5.5 million copies worldwide.

Taylor Lautner, who plays the character Jacob Black in the upcoming movie adaptation of the books said, “The fans are the driving force behind this thing.”

The series tells the story of 17-year-old Bella Swan, who meets the intriguing yet elusive Edward Cullen upon her arrival at Forks, Wash. Edward, as well as the rest of his family, turn out to be a secret coven of vegetarian vampires; they don’t kill humans. Bella and Edward’s inevitable love is doomed from the beginning as her being a human draws various “bad” vampires to come and kill her. In “New Moon”, a second love interest is introduced in the form of Jacob, Bella’s best friend who just happens to be a werewolf.

For the August 2 release of  “Breaking Dawn,” Meyer’s fourth and final book in the series, distributors have printed more than 3.2 million copies; more than half the copies of the rest of the series now in print, and a record first-printing for “Twilight” publishing company Little, Brown and Company.

“Breaking Dawn” will answer the big Twilight questions: Who will Bella choose, and will she become a vampire?

Meyer’s saga has become a cultural phenomenon, though this year is by far its biggest yet. In addition to the release of “Breaking Dawn”, a movie adaptation of the novel will be released December 12 starring Kristen Stewart as Bella and Robert Pattinson as Edward.

This year’s San Diego Comic-con hosted a special event Thursday to promote the upcoming film. Meyer, director Catherine Hardwicke, and some of the movie’s cast attended the panel. Waiting anxiously for them were thousands of screaming fans, though only about 6,500 were admitted to the hall.

“I saw the book as a film before I saw it as a book,” said Meyer of her excitement for the “Twilight” movie.

The Comic-con event was the first experience the cast had of the true intensity behind the “Twilight” fan base, and it was clear from their faces and the nervous hitch in their responses that none of them were prepared for the thousands of girls, women and even men who were screaming their hearts out for the characters that had captured their hearts.

“I fell in love with ["Twilight"] just like you guys did,” said Hardwicke to the audience. “I wanted to see Bella and Edward living, breathing. You know we tried to do the best we could [for the movie].”

Stewart said that, as a “sappy, sensitive girl”, she took the role of Bella to try to depict the “perfect-but-not-perfect-but-perfect-in-its-ideologicalness love” felt between Bella and Edward.

“Bella and I are really different if you get inside my head,” said Meyer, who said she gets just as frustrated with Bella’s decisions as the rest of her fans. “I’m actually a lot more like Edward.”

Meyer was able to confirm that a song by Muse; her favorite band and some of the inspiration behind the series, had been signed for the movie soundtrack, while Hardwicke confirmed that two songs written by Robert Pattinson will be included in the soundtrack of the movie, and that his spontaneous piano playing during filming might be used as Bella’s Lullaby.

The three “bad vampires” were a large part of the panel; Cam Gigandet as James, Rachelle Lefevre as Victoria and Edi Gathegi as Laurent.

“I wanted to be a part of [Bella's] world in every way I could,” said Lefevre. “If that meant I had to terrorize her than so be it.”

Trailers and clips of the film, especially the extended “ballet studio scene” aired at during the panel, show the movie version of “Twilight” focusing more on action than the novel did. This is good news for Gigandet, Lefevre and Gathegi because that means more screen time for them before their inevitable deaths. For Gigandet, his comes at the end of the first movie.

“We don’t actually die because you’re stuck with us on DVD forever,” joked Lefevre.

Fans have been initially hesitant about how the cast compares to the characters, and none have felt this sting more than now-”Twilight”-golden-boy Robert Pattinson.

“I just wanted to play [Edward] because he’s the hottest vampire in the world,” said Pattinson with a laugh, causing a deafening scream from the crown.

“[Vampires are hot] because that’s how I write them,” Meyer added, which turned the screaming into a deafening roar.

Although movie adaptations of “New Moon” and “Eclipse”, the second and third novels in the series, have not yet been confirmed, the idea that the “Twilight” fan base will not cause “Twilight” to be a box-office smash, regardless of the quality of the film, seems nearly impossible.

“I would love to be in [a sequel]. Love to,” said Gathegi .

“So would I,” said Gigandet wistfully.