“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

Long story short: if you liked all the other “Twilight” movies then you will probably like this one. If you never liked it before, this movie isn’t going to change your views. Twihards beware: I am one of the latter. I have seen them all, and the only good movie in the entire series was probably the second one. Oh…and I’ll come clean and announce that if I’m going to be on any team then I’m on team Jacob. All the scenes without Edward were the very best.

Plot time: if you read the books there are no surprises. Stefanie Meyers must have kept director Bill Condon on a short leash. There was no deviation from the written word. I almost feel like I could read the book side-by-side with the movie dialogue. Bella Swann (Kristen Stewart) is planning for her wedding with vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). Sparks are heated between the vampires and the werewolves over whether turning Bella into a vampire breaks the ancient treaty of doing no harm to humans. But it’s not happening yet. Edward and Bella decide to have a honeymoon before the big change.

The vampire allegory for a pure virginal marriage comes through when the happy couple completely ignore birth control and end up with an “uh oh.” Bella becomes pregnant with vampire spawn and we are faced with another allegory for the debate for life vs. choice. Edward wants the baby gone before it can kill Bella, but Bella wants the baby to live even if she dies bringing it into the world. This sparks a civil war in the werewolf tribe. The current leader sees the baby as a threat to their pack. Now Jacob has to make the choice to stay with his kind or renege to save Bella.

The story is enough to make you cringe and/or laugh, but it’s the film style that really takes “Breaking Dawn” over the top. There were very few special effects. When there were, they were laughably out of place. A fuzzy dream sequence here, angry red vision there. If they appeared more often then they wouldn’t seem like such afterthoughts being thrown between the frames. The choice of music had the same affect. Whose idea was it to play hippie stoner music for the love montage scenes?

I think Condon tried his best, but teenage monster love is a little outside his purview. This is the guy who did “Dream Girls” and wrote in “Chicago.” I would be interested in seeing if turning “Twilight” into a sing-along would make it any better. Condon has also done a lot of movies I’ve never even heard of, which is why probably wanted to tack his name onto a huge movie franchise even if it’s bad. The most stylistically beautiful scene in the whole movie was a red and white wedding nightmare Bella had. It was visually stunning and it stands out. I could see musical theatre written all over it. I wouldn’t have been surprised if they burst into song about the dangers and delights of being married to a vampire. Doesn’t that sound funny?

This was the Condon’s chance to take this movie to the next level and he scaled it back. Remember how much fun it was counting how many times Jacob took off his shirt in the last movie? Well he only took his shirt off once! The rest of the werewolves were fully clothed the entire time too. If I’m going to sit through 120 minutes of a “Twilight” movie, I at least expect some eye candy. But no…this was a purity driven film where the only action we got was the haphazard sex scenes that Pattinson clearly didn’t get into. I’m telling you the chemistry is gone.

I know the Twihards out there are going to hate me for hating on this, but I tell you now that this is the worst movie of the four so far. Go see it for yourself, but remember you won’t ever get those two hours back.

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.

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.

“Twilight” star Taylor Lautner is going to be an action star in his up-coming film “Abduction.”

In the movie, Lautner is a high school student who ends up knowing that his parents aren’t actually his parents. And then, he’s on the run from some scary government agents who are attacking him before he finds out the truth about his origins.

It looks like we will get to see another side of the 19-year-old actor that we don’t see in the Twilight series, but don’t worry! In the film, there are romantic scenes that Lautner kisses co-star Lily Collins.

Lautner told MTV regarding his kissing scenes, “I mean, I think it depends. It depends on the person and your vibe together, ’cause sometimes it can totally be awkward. But if you’re in the moment and you are literally living these characters, you forget about everything else, then it’s fine. It was totally fine.”

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 “FAME: Taylor Lautner” comic book biography will hit bookstores this Wednesday.

Lautner was a relatively unknown actor until he and his abs made their debut in the “Twilight” movie series.

Kimberly Sherman, who has penned the biography comics of both Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, also wrote the new Lautner comic. Warren Martineck, an artist for DC Comics’ WildStorm studio, provided the interior art.

There will be two collectible covers.

Next Month the Fame biography comic book series features “The Cast of Glee” and a new version of “Lady Gaga.”

“Back to December,” another new song from Taylor Swift’s upcoming album “Speak Now,” is currently making headlines because, for the first time, the song is about her who needs to apologize for her behavior in a relationship. Swift talks about the song, and has already admitted it’s about a young man whose heart she broke.

So fans are assuming it’s “Twilight’s” Taylor Lautner.

She sings:

This is me swallowing my pride,
Standing in front of you saying I’m sorry for that night,
And I go back to December all the time.
It turns out freedom ain’t nothing but missing you,
Wishing I’d realized what I had when you were mine,
I go back to December, turn around and make it all right.

No matter who she is talking about in this one, her consistent honesty putting into songs makes the tunes really outstanding and heartfelt.

I am not a Twi-hard. I am not a Twilighter, a Twi-fan or even a Twi-mom, given I have no children. I am not a variation on any of those titles. But I am also not a hater. But in a world of film critics who love to hate Twilight, I stand apart. I am a huge fan of the books and by connection a tentative fan of the films. As this is an anomaly in film critic-dom, I feel it’s necessary to share my findings and my regrettably unique perspective — that being that I was probably one of few critics not going into “Twilight: Eclipse” completely ready to hate it and one of the few fans not going in to deify it.

The notes I took during the film read much like the truncated exclamations that punctuate the Twilight books — “Campy,” “Thrilling,” “Sexy,” “Scary.” But the one word that preceded more nouns than any other was simply “Better.” No one can say that the Twilight films, separately or together, make a completely respectable piece of art. But they’re getting better.

David Slade takes the helm on the latest film in the franchise and with his background in the horror genre (“Hard Candy”) brings back the campy feel that made the original “Twilight” lovable in its own way. This isn’t the gold-flecked, Italian painting style that we saw in New Moon. We aren’t watching a series of sappy, dialogue-less montages set to a soundtrack of Muse tunes. “Eclipse” brings back the dark, (and yet, somehow lighter with more quippy one-liners and less vampiric, love-lorn brooding) sopping wet Forks, Washington readers fell in love with in 2007.

The greatest improvement in Eclipse is the writing. Slade thankfully got rid of all the pain-drenched kissing and whiny declarations of love. He replaced it with (at times) witty dialogue, and what’s more, he used LINES FROM THE BOOK. What a revolutionary idea. As “Eclipse” was my favorite book, it pleased me to no end that the tent and bedroom scenes were left verbally in tact. After all, this why we go to see movies made from our favorite books in the first place — to see the complete incarnation of the scenes we’ve imagined a thousand times, without any interference from less-than-stellar screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg.

But Slade doesn’t just succeed by sticking to the books — he weaves in themes that are absent from the books but completely fitting. This is a relieving change of pace, especially when you’re watching a film where you’re certain there won’t be any real surprises. Slade knows his strengths, too. He gives Oscar-nominee Anna Kendrick the spotlight to deliver a, in the hands of a less-talented actress then Kendrick, generic graduation speech that draws uncomfortable parallels between Bella, who is about to become a vampire, and other normal teenagers (“This is our time to make mistakes, because nothing is permanent.” Well, except that whole undead thing).

The film has an air of self-deprication that saves it in many scenes. Slade gave the characters the freedom to make fun of themselves, which alleviated so much unnecessary tension. He did this primarily through one-liners that smacked the characters back in place just as they were about to head down a path of overly-moody dialogue.

“Oh, believe me, I want to,” Edward (Robert Pattinson) says, cracking a smile after denying Bella (Kristen Stewart) sex before marriage. The moment needed a lift, especially when trying to convince audiences that two people in love shouldn’t make love is a hard sell.

“I kissed Bella,” Jacob (Taylor Lautner) growls at Charlie (Billy Burke). But then he falters. “….and she broke her hand. Punching my face. It was a little misunderstanding.”

“I’m a VIRGIN!” Bella exclaims to Charlie during one of the best scenes of the film where Charlie and Bella have “The Talk.”

But it’s not all one-liners. Slade doesn’t sacrifice emotional intensity. At the climax of the film when the furious, red-eyed vampire Riley Biers (Xavier Samuels) growls “You’re dead” at Edward, you believe him.

Slade also centers much of the film around newborn vampire Riley, who was virtually nonexistent in the book. Riley, a Forks native, plays the right hand man of “Eclipse”s villain, Victoria. Shortly after she turned him, she sent him off to rally a vampire army that would take on the Cullen clan. “I will end the Cullen clan,” he says, flashing his sharp new vampire teeth. Slade draws a comparison between the story of Riley and that of Jasper Hale, who had a similar beginning to his vampire life. Unlike Riley, Jasper and his hokey southern accent made it out of his first bad vampire relationship alive. There is, however, an unnecessary and unsettling scene in Jasper’s flashback where he kills a newborn vampire who couldn’t have been more than fourteen years old.

Some other tid-bits that Twilight fans (who aren’t going to read this before they see the movie anyway, because they’ve all been lined up outside the theaters since yesterday morning) will be glad to know — the sparkle effect is tasteful and rarely used, and the accompanying wind chime sound effect is noticeably, and thankfully, absent. Jacob has his shirt off for most of the film. This will be a relief to fans and critics alike, since fans will appreciate his abs and critics will appreciate not having to see him take off his shirt at every potentially quivery moment. And there is a lot of making out. That’s all I have to say about that (to borrow a line from a much better movie).

If you’re not waiting in line at this very moment to see “Eclipse,” give it a shot. It’s better than the first two and is at least worth it for the action scenes.

Hey Twi-hards, are you Team Edward or Team Jacob? Well this time around, you should all be Team Eric, Bella’s human friend played by Justin Chon.

Justin is swinging by Phoenix this Saturday to talk to Blast, and we want to give all of you Twilight fans out there a chance to ask him anything you want. Dying to know if Taylor Lautner’s abs are as impressive in person? Want to ask questions about Eclipse, which comes out next Wednesday? Leave your questions in the comments section below or email them to us (info in the contacts section).

And be sure to check back to see your burning questions answered by your favorite Twilight human!

To satisfy Twihards’ voracious appetites, new “Eclipse” posters were released earlier this week.

Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and his family are dazzling. The intense and brooding Edward is front and center, flanked by an oddly dark looking Emmet (Kellan Lutz), a guarded Alice (Ashley Greene), an always pensive Jasper (Jackson Rathbone), a serious Rosalie (Nikki Reed), and concerned parents Esme (Elizabeth Reaser) and Carlisle (Peter Facinelli).

Edward, Bella (Kristen Stewart), and Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) each have their own poster. Edward is sporting his infamous heartbroken intensity. Bella is her conflicted, introverted self, and Jacob is confident and focused. The trio is also on a new poster together.

The villains of the story aren’t left out of the new line of “Eclipse” posters. Riley (Xavier Samuel) rises from the water, bringing a dark aurora tainted with certain death. Behind him is Victoria’s (Bryce Dallas Howard) army of newborn vampires, which she created to destroy Edward and Bella.

Volturi vampires Jane (Dakota Fanning), Felix (Daniel Cudmore), Demetri (Charlie Bewley) and Alec (Cameron Bright) also have a poster of their own.

The original “Eclipse” poster also featured main characters Bella, Edward and Jacob.

You know, I actually buy that Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin would share a hotel room. Hilarious parody of “Paranormal Activity” and nice intro to a horror film tribute.

OMG!!! Taylor Lautner and Kristen Stewart. Both look rather bored, although it’s nice to see that KStew dressed appropriately for the Oscars — no converse or daggered skirt. And Taylor Lautner, suit and tie as usual (does this guy own a tshirt?) Did we really just see an Oscar clip package that included “Saw”, “Chucky,” an evil leprechaun and…”Twilight”??? The clip package gave some great examples of why horror movies aren’t taken more seriously. Though I do have to say the “Scream” clips have me excited for the fourth movie.

Young Hollywood on parade continues with Zac Efron and Anne Kendrick presenting art and sound editing. They are the much more impressive duo. For those of you who didn’t get a chance to see “Me and Orson Welles” (which I am assuming was many of you), definitely look for it on DVD. Efron equates himself really well and proves he is a promising leading man.

Nice bringing Morgan Freeman into the clip to show the artistry behind sound editing and mixing. Love what the Oscars are doing to explain these awards to us novices at home. I was expecting “Avatar” to pick up most of the technical categories. This could be a sign that “Hurt Locker” should be the strong favorite for Best Picture now.
And Mixing goes to “Hurt Locker” as well. “Avatar” may be in trouble.

A lot of things were going on yesterday. Oprah was announcing the end of her daytime talk show. Sarah Palin was touring the country, promoting her new book and jabbing at Obama’s policies at every turn. Surely, Taylor Swift was walking around somewhere telling someone that she wasn’t dating Taylor Lautner.

But ask most any girl under the age of 16 (and their moms, for that matter) what November 20 meant to them, and they’d tell you one thing: "New Moon."

At midnight last night, girls were lining up at theaters all around the world to catch the first glimpse of the sequel. Would it include all the important parts from the book? they wondered. Will the special effects be cool? Will there be enough Edward?

In the interest of full disclosure, I’ll admit I was asking myself the same things as I walked into the theater. And in the end, I was not disappointed.

Catherine Hardwicke’s "Twilight" was lacking in these ways: there was stilted dialogue, awkward special effects and some funny scenes that weren’t meant to be funny. Director Chris Weitz transitioned the cold, awkward world of "Twilight" into a warm, emotional and dynamic "New Moon."

Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg seems to have taken a little more time with this script, as the banter between the characters feels natural. She leaves the "lion and the lamb" quotes in the book where they belong.

The movie touches on almost every important scene in the book, which will please die-hard (or Twi-hard) fans. The movie moves quickly, giving about 15 minutes to process every intense emotion that Stephenie Meyer spent 100 pages talking about, so it can feel a bit rushed. But when you realize that the movie is over two hours long, you re-think that assessment.

The only part of the film that was seriously lacking was the wolf pack. Only two of the four have any serious build, and if you’re going to spend half the movie walking around shirtless, you need to at least get rid of the muffin top. Not to mention the fact that the wolf transformations are by turns incredibly realistic and incredibly…not. The wolves sometimes look fierce and other times, look like cartoons, which is a big disappointment if you’ve seen "The Golden Compass." And there’s an unforgivable sequence where wolf pack leader Sam Uley jumps off of a cliff and you feel like you’re watching an animation from the "Tomb Raider" computer game you had as a kid.

Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner have incredible chemistry. Kristen plays the broken Bella very well, and Lautner exudes the warmth of his character. Plus, he’s not bad to look at either. In the end, your heart breaks when he begs her to stay, and the most loyal Edward fans wonder if maybe they wouldn’t choose Jacob instead.

But in the end, the movie brings you back to Edward and Bella, as it should. It ends on a well-deserved cliff-hanger, leaving the Twi-hards squealing until next June, when the third installment, "Eclipse," is scheduled for release.

Remember the crappy cartoon wolf we got a glimpse of in the first “New Moon” trailer? Well, that’s all history. Summit went back to the drawing board, and just a month before the film releases, they’re showing us how the wolves look now: ferocious, realistic and HUGE!! This is the first full clip of the movie (with an extra little intro by Taylor Lautner), so enjoy it, and be sure to check back here daily for more “New Moon” coverage – we’ll keep it coming for you!

Welcome to “New Moon” heaven. Team Edward and Team Jacob will both be pleased to see that over 80 new stills from “New Moon” have been released, just over a month before the movie’s release, in the form of the New Moon Movie Companion. And God bless the Twihard who scanned her copy so none of us would have to go out and drop $10 on Amazon.

See the best ones below.

Catch the rest at newmoonmovie.org

Photo credit: ralphy137, robpattinson.blogspot.com

Here you go, Twi-hards. Just when you thought you’d seen a photo or clip from every scene in the upcoming “New Moon,” you get more. Who knows, we just might see the whole movie without ever stepping into theaters! To view the rest of the pics, visit here.

Photo credit: Ryanseacrest.com courtesy of Latimes.com, also Newmoonmovie.org

Black Island Farm in Syracuse, Utah has a corn maze. It’s not an uncommon sight. The kids love it.

Surprised they allow this kinda thing in Utah. (Media credit/Sky News)

The words “Team Edward” and “Team Jacob” are even carved below their mugs.

The farmer used GPS technology to design the maze, which sits on a 400-acre farm that grows carrots, onions, cabbage, corn, pumpkins and other squash, according to Radar.

If you find yourself in Utah, the maze will be open to the public from September 24 until Halloween. It takes about an hour to get through it, but only minutes to fall in love with Edward or Jacob.

“New Moon” will be in theaters, and so will you, on November 30.

You can take two things away from Taylor Lautner’s cover story on Teen Vogue: His karate instructor was a blue Power Ranger, and there is no love triangle among him, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart.

“It’s crazy,” the “New Moon” hunk said. “But the fans help. They’re a big part of the motivation.”

Lautner credited a childhood karate teacher, who also played a blue Power Ranger in the hit series. The karate coach encouraged him to go into acting in the first place, he says.

He also evaded a question about his rumored love interest, Disney’s Selena Gomez.

“She’s a great girl,” he said, saying nothing else.

Blast was fortunate enough to speak with Mike Welch, who plays the Twilight Saga’s lovable human Mike Newton, today about the hype around “Twilight” and it’s upcoming sequel “New Moon” his work with charity, and… meth labs?

BLAST: So how was shooting in Vancouver different from Portland?

MW: Vancouver is one of my favorite cities, not only to film in but just to be in. I’ve shot a few different things over there over the past 10 years. I mean, Portland is great, there’s some great poetry and a great book store up there, but Vancouver, there’s just something about the way the city feels… That’s just the differences in the city, the differences in the films themselves, I mean, totally different. By the time “New Moon” rolled around, we tried to keep it as big a secret as we could [our locations], but it was impossible because all it took was one person to spot Rob or Taylor on the street and in 20 minutes there were hundreds of people there and there was paparazzi there and you know, it was just much more of an ordeal.

BLAST: Speaking of Portland, are you going to be at the Twilight Vampire Baseball Event?

MW: Over the July 4th weekend? Yeah yeah, it’s for charity, it’s a Make-A-Wish event.

BLAST: And you’ve done charity work before. You did environmental charity right?

MW: I won some sort of environmental award for some reason a couple years back… I guess since I drive a Prius or something. I mean a made a couple of environmental videos.

The main charity I’ve been with is Kids with a Cause, and we’re a multi-cause charity, but the ultimate goal is to help kids in need. We started out as a local charity, visiting like, orphanages, burn centers, etc. Now we’re trying to go international and help kids that need some of the basic fundamental things in life so they can pursue their own happiness. It’s been very rewarding

BLAST: So there’s Team Edward shirts, Team Jacob thongs, even Team Tyler’s Van merchandise -”" any Team Mike stuff popping up?

MW: There has been a little bit of Team Mike that I’ve seen. I’ve seen a couple t-shirts, but it was mostly my friends making fun of me [laughs]. I do get people every now and then telling me they are on Team Mike.

BLAST: If you had to pick a side, would you really be Team Mike, or choose between Edward and Jacob? Or are you contractually obligated like I’m guessing Kristen is to be ambiguous?

MW: I actually… between Edward and Team Jacob, I’m actually Team Jacob. I like Edward, but I… and I think it’s more of a gender thing more than anything else. I think Jacob represents more of a practical relationship, so I’d go Jacob -”" but if there is a legitimate Team Mike that emerges, I will be happy to join it.

BLAST: Bella does some crazy stuff in “New Moon.” Did you do anything so daring in high school?

MW: You know, [laughs] one thing that I used to do was go into the local high school with my car with my friend in the passenger seat and do really lame donuts and stuff and every now and then I’d get into little shenanigans like that. The most dangerous thing I did as a kid was, my grandma lived in the senior center, well not a senior center, more of a neighborhood. [Laughs] This is just so lame I can’t believe I’m telling you, anyway, and kids weren’t allowed to walk around unattended so my cousin and I would just walk around and avoid security.

BLAST: That’s pretty bad ass.

MW: Oh now that I think of it “"- when I was a kid, I actually grew up in a mobile home and there was actually what I later discovered to be meth lab right across from me. My neighbor and I would play cops and bad guys and we would spy on them and follow them around and stuff because we knew they were bad, but we had no idea.

BLAST: So has that ass shaking dance [from outside of the diner in "Twilight"] always won you the girls?

MW: Oh sure, that thing has followed me around like you wouldn’t believe [laughs]. No, nothing like that ever seemed to work in real life. I was similar to Mike Newton in high school — I hope I wasn’t that annoying — but that was my angle: “I’m the quirky guy, love me please.” But that never quite worked.

BLAST: So you said at some point they almost didn’t include the movie scene in New Moon? What’s that about?

MW: You know it’s a tricky thing when you try and turn a book into a movie because a movie is only two hours and there’s only so much you can fit in, but yeah, what they originally did was they took that moment between Jacob and Bella and put it in a different scene of the movie. Luckily Taylor and Kristen lobbied that scene for me to Chris Weitz saying it absolutely had to be in, and it’s a good scene. They weren’t really lobbying for me, it’s just, how can you not have that scene in there? Yeah, so I was really happy to hear that, and it was great for me because I got to do Mike’s best scene in the book.

BLAST: Any secrets from the “New Moon” set? Like maybe Justin Chon is really diva?

MW: Well I can tell you that Justin Chon actually has 3 nipples.

BLAST: You’re definitely making that up.

MW: Yeah. [Laughs] It’s funny, because that’s the thing everyone’s looking for, something to say, but these are pretty uncontroversial people.

BLAST: I guess that’s why pictures of the cast smoking cigarettes on set became some big scandal?

MW: Yeah, that’s about as scandalous as it gets.

Who wants to start this “legitimate” Team Mike already?

“Twilight” stars Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner will present a clip from anticipated vampire sequel “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” May 31 at the MTV Movie Awards.

The stars similarly presented a clip of “Twilight” at last year’s Movie Awards.

“The Twilight Saga: New Moon” is set to be released November 20, 2009.

Last year’s clip was of the climactic Ballet Studio scene. Blast Twilight fans, what clip do you think will be shown at this year’s Movie Awards?

Perez Hilton recently reported that “Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke has been replaced for the film’s sequel “New Moon” by director Chris Weitz (“The Golden Compass”).

Next in line to be potentially replaced is Taylor Lautner, who Blast already mentioned could be getting booted from his role as Jacob. Hilton said that actor Michael Copon (“The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior”) is a possible candidate for the role.

Both actors have stated their interest in the character, with Lautner promising in an interview with MTV to gain 10 more pounds to flesh out Jacob.

The character of Jacob is supposed to physically look like a 25 year old and grow a lot taller and bulkier in “New Moon,” whereas in “Twilight” he is just an average 16 year old.

Summit Entertainment has not released a statement confirming or denying that Lautner will be replaced for “New Moon.”

Both “New Moon” and “Twilight” are based on the best-selling teen vampire novels by Stephenie Meyer.

UPDATE JAN 9: TAYLOR IS BACK FOR NEW MOON!

According to Ryan Seacrest on his syndicated radio talk show, actor Taylor Lautner, who played the character Jacob in November’s hit “Twilight” and was expected to reprise the role in the saga’s later installments, will not return in the second film, “New Moon.”

Summit Entertainment, the studio behind the “Twilight” franchise, allegedly paid leading man Robert Pattinson too much money to keep him for the next three films and could not afford the rest of the cast, Seacrest said.

“Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke was confirmed to not be returning for “New Moon” last week because she could not commit to the release schedule Summit wanted for the film.

In “New Moon,” Jacob (who Lautner played in “Twilight) plays the leading man role in the absence of Edward (Pattinson) — the love interest of main character, Bella.

Since its release on November 21, “Twilight” has grossed over $140 million, nearly quadrupling its $37 million budget.

Blast’s Editor-in-Chief John Guilfoil contributed to this report.

Blast releases a special TWILIGHT EXTRA issue of the magazine on Monday with photos and video from the event, a longer interview with Robert Pattinson, our movie review, and more!

SAUGUS, Mass. — The teenage girl came out of the Hot Topic store, eyes glazed with a silly smile on her face. Her mother ran up to meet her, just as the words started tumbling out of the daughter’s lips.

“He talked to me,” she gasped, as her mother smiled along but tried to calm the teen down.

“She has epilepsy,” the mother explained, “and I don’t want her to seize.”

Then she scooped up her daughter and hurried away, without giving her name, to make room for the next giggling girl.

Fan dedication: defined.

She was just one of hundreds who flocked to the Square One Mall north of Boston on Friday. The object of their fanaticism wasn’t one of the Jonas Brothers or Miley Cyrus, but rather a soft-spoken, spiky-haired Brit named Robert Pattinson.

In the words of one indignant passerby who was turned away from shopping at the barricaded Hot Topic: “He isn’t even famous.”

Though Pattinson, 22, may not be a household name yet, to the fan community of Stephenie Meyer’s vampire “Twilight” series, (and hardcore Harry Potter fans who remember he played Cedric Diggory) he is second to none. Playing the lead male character Edward in the upcoming vampire film “Twilight,” the fan hysteria has reached peak heights.

“At first I thought maybe he wasn’t as good for Edward, but now I think he’s perfect,” said Selys Rivera, 14, of Worcester. “He’s completely perfect for Edward. He’s amazing.”

Pattinson, along with co-stars Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, Edi Gathegi and Rachelle Lefavre, is headlining the Hot Topic-sponsored movie tour to promote “Twilight” in the final days before the film’s release on November 21. The Saugus event was Pattinson’s third and final stop on the tour after the event scheduled in San Francisco was canceled after fans mobbed the mall.

Pattinson, Stewart, and the trio of Lautner, Gathegi and Lefavre toured to 13 cities across the U.S. from November 10 through November 15.

“[The hysteria] hasn’t died down at all,” Pattinson told Blast in a brief interview at the Saugus Hot Topic. “It happened in [Italy], it happened in Mexico. It’s completely ridiculous.”

Here in Saugus, the crowd was much tamer than the events in San Francisco and Chicago. Wristbands were given, starting at 9 p.m. Thursday, to the first 500 people who bought the Hot Topic official “Twilight” tour T-shirt. The Saugus police were no-nonsense about the event and were a steady presence around the mall throughout the night.

“We got here at about 9 p.m. yesterday and we were there like all night long,” said Attleboro resident Amanda Pease, 20. “We only left to go to Starbucks.”

At 5 p.m. Friday, a crowd of a couple hundred girls had gathered around a stage that was set up for Pattinson to speak to the fans for the question and answer portion of the event. Some had camped out for more than 20 hours just for the chance to meet their beloved “Edward,” while others had arrived only moments before to wait around until Pattinson spoke at on the stage.

A security presence was felt. A barricade was set up like a moat around the stage to protect Pattinson from the overzealousness of any rabid fan-girls.

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.