Where Are They Now? Grading The ‘Twilight’ Cast’s Careers After The Vampire Sage
From 2008 to 2012, the Twilight cast ruled the world.
Paparazzi followed them. Fans followed them. Heck, even studio execs followed them, attempting to convince them to join their next big franchise projects after the vampire saga concluded. With such fanfare and overwhelming attention, the expectation remained that they would take the Twilight goodwill and ride it to the top of Hollywood’s A list.
The reality is not everyone tasted the same level of success post-Twilight. Some cast members have largely disappeared from showbiz, while others continued working but not at the highest level. Let’s take a look at what the main cast has been up to since the conclusion of Breaking Dawn and grade their efforts!
Kellan Lutz
As Emmett Cullen, Kellan Lutz shined as the powerhouse of the vampire family. Consequently, it wasn’t too difficult to imagine Lutz going on to have an action-centric career afterward. He received the chance in The Expendables 3 and The Legend of Hercules, but neither film catapulted him to action star status. At one point, he was attached to play He-Man in a Masters of the Universe reboot, though that project fell apart. For the next few years Lutz labored in mostly straight-to-video fodder, with his biggest post-Twilight role being Kenny Crosby in the FBI television series.
Grade: D
Nikki Reed
Before playing Rosalie Hale in The Twilight Saga, Nikki Reed had a tidy career in Hollywood. Post-Twilight, though, her career halted. She starred in a few films, with the most notable being 2013’s Empire State, and appeared in the television series Sleepy Hollow and V-Wars. However, since 2019, Reed hasn’t done much acting work. The reason for this? She and her husband, Ian Somerhalder, left Hollywood and moved their family to a farm. Reed lives out of the limelight and doesn’t appear to be too concerned about acting anymore.
Grade: F
Jackson Rathbone
Jackson Rathbone caught everyone’s attention because of his unique appearance as Jasper Hale in Twilight. There aren’t many actors who look like him and this could have worked in his favor after the vampire saga concluded. Rathbone continued to find work after Twilight; however, it was largely in the indie and low-budget film space. He hasn’t starred in a big production since Breaking Dawn – Part 2, and that doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. In recent years his most noteworthy role was as Giorgio in the television series The Last Ship.
Grade: D-
Ashley Greene
Out of all the Cullens not named Edward, Ashley Greene’s Alice carved her way into the viewer’s heart. She established herself as a fan-favorite character, and the audience expected Greene’s career to soar to greater heights after Twilight. While Greene didn’t ascend to A-list status, she hasn’t had the worst output of the Twilight cast. In fact, she’s had more wins than losses. There have been major peaks, such as Burying the Ex and Bombshell, and action delights, like One Shot and Accident Man, scattered in between forgettable efforts, such as Urge and Wrong Place. All in all, Greene hasn’t fared too bad.
Grade: C+
Anna Kendrick
Jessica Stanley plays a supporting role as Bella Swan’s friend in Twilight, but actor Anna Kendrick grabbed a hold of the golden opportunity with both hands. She used the role to elevate her own career, becoming a much bigger deal in showbiz than Jessica was in the vampire saga. Kendrick secured another franchise for herself in the form of Pitch Perfect, then starred alongside Ben Affleck in The Accountant, and teamed up with Blake Lively for the surprising black comedy hit A Simple Favor. In addition to this, Kendrick directed and starred in Netflix’s creepy thriller Woman of the Hour that turned into a must-watch movie on the streaming service. Unquestionably, the sky continues to be the limit for this talented all-rounder who shows no signs of slowing down.
Grade: A
Taylor Lautner
As one-third of Twilight‘s most intriguing love triangle, Taylor Lautner turned many fans into Team Jacob Black. A bona fide teen heartthrob and constant obsession for the gossip mags, Lautner had no shortage of admirers and people rooting for his further success. However, he’s one of the main Twilight cast members who never fulfilled their true potential. That said, it isn’t like the offers flooded in for major roles. Instead, he secured parts in bottom-of-the-barrel Netflix films like The Ridiculous 6 and Home Team. Post-Twilight, Lautner’s biggest wins were on television where he scooped up main roles in Scream Queens and the British sitcom Cuckoo.
Grade: D
Kristen Stewart
After playing Bella Swan, Hollywood may have expected Kristen Stewart to emulate the career of someone like Scarlett Johansson where she would go on to become a leading actor and seek out major IP to attach herself to. However, that wasn’t the case as Stewart decided to forge her own path, often taking the indie road rather than the one paved with major studio films. At first, it appeared like she would be lost to obscurity, but her decision paid off as she found the right balance in between doing films like Underwater and Spencer, which garnered her an Academy Award nomination. Don’t expect Stewart to join the likes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though, as she chases deeper roles rather than summer blockbusters.
Grade: B+
Robert Pattinson
Hollywood expected Robert Pattinson to become the next big thing after starring as Edward Cullen in Twilight. However, he followed Kristen Stewart’s lead, choosing to pursue interesting indie films rather than stick to the course mapped out for him. The gamble worked, as he received critical acclaim for starring in films like Cosmopolis, The Rover, Good Time, and High Life. Resultantly, every director wanted to work with him and he never had a shortage of roles to choose from, including a delicious part in Christopher Nolan’s Tenet. His work on Good Time, in particular, caught the eye of Matt Reeves who cast Pattinson as his Dark Knight in The Batman. For Pattinson, it’s now become a case of having to divide his time between his artsy projects and major motion pictures.
Grade: A
