“Twilight” catapulted Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart to fame when it first premiered in 2008, leading the two to fruitful careers on screen. But who would play Edward Cullen and Bella Swan if the saga was rebooted today?
According to Catherine Hardwicke, who directed the first “Twilight” film, Jacob Elordi and Jenna Ortega “would be perfect” as the star-crossed lovers. On an episode of the “Watchalong” podcast, Hardwicke agreed when host Josh Horowitz suggested Elordi and Ortega, who are two of the hottest young stars in Hollywood right now.
“He’s amazing. He probably would be Edward today,” Hardwicke said of Elordi, who is currently enjoying a double header of success with starring roles in Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla” and Emerald Fennell’s “Saltburn.”
As for who should play Bella, Hardwicke said it would have to be Ortega, who has made a name for herself both as a “Scream” queen and as the star of Netflix’s “Wednesday” — though Ortega just announced that she won’t be appearing in “Scream 7” due to scheduling conflicts.
“I do think there’s a lot of really cool young actors,” Hardwicke said. “You just mentioned Jenna Ortega, she’s amazing.”
While on the podcast, Hardwicke also reflected on the process of casting Pattinson and Stewart in the original “Twilight” film, revealing that the studio questioned if Pattinson was good looking enough to play the movie’s brooding vampire.
“When he came over to my house, he had black bangs for hair and was kind of out of shape because he was hanging out at the pub all the time,” Hardwicke recalled of auditioning Pattinson. “After we did the fun auditions [with Kristen] at my house for a couple hours, then I looked the next morning at all the footage I shot and recorded and I thought it worked not just in person but it works on screen. I had to be sure. Of course in person I just got carried away, but you have to be sure it translates [to the screen].”
