It feels like only yesterday that vampires were taking over pop culture, thanks to the rise of Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight saga series. The popular books which spawned a series of films made an impact on the young adult audience, for better or for worse. Kristen Stewart, the very star who played heroine Bella Swann, looks back on this iconic role of hers in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
"Dude, it's weird because it feels incredibly far away and also still not that far away from me and my time in this film. I don't know, like, on one hand you're like, 'Oh, I'm old, my God, I did this five minutes ago, now it's like 10-year anniversary.' I'm like, wow, I have to go to my high school anniversary already."
While 2008’s Twilight wasn’t Stewart’s first jump into her acting career, it was definitely the role that kickstarted her into stardom. Twilight followed Stewart playing the role of Bella Swann, a young teenage girl who had just moved to a new town in Washington State. She soon becomes acquainted with a classmate, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), who is revealed to be a vampire. The film balances a budding teenage romance with Bella trying to survive being hunted by another vampire as Edward protects her. The book’s success birthed sequels New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. All of the books have been adapted into films, with Breaking Dawn being broken into two parts. The films were a hit, with fans picking sides on who Bella would end up with. Some were “Team Edward,” hoping for Bella to stay with the vampire family. Or “Team Jacob,” who wanted Bella to run away with her other friend, an Indigenous werewolf boy.
After Breaking Dawn Part 2’s release, the fandom was mostly silent. But when the films recently were added to the Netflix library, there’s since been a resurgence of Twilight nostalgia. Former fans are looking back with both fond and critical eyes of a series they loved so much, and new fans are giving the films a chance and finding themselves enjoying the teen drama.
"It's rad, I don't know, I haven't really ... that hasn't touched me yet. I can't wait for someone who's 12 or 15 to suddenly think, like, it's like when you're little and you tell your parents how great Jimi Hendrix is or something -- not to say that I'm remotely comparing my life to Jimi Hendrix -- but you know what I mean where they're like, 'Dude, you don't even know, it's like, so sick.' I do, I was in that."
Kristen Stewart Has Been Busy Beyond Bella
After she was done with vampires, Kristen Stewart has been busy with other roles. Her most recent contribution was playing the beloved Princess Diana in 2021’s Spencer. Stewart had this to say about the real Diana.
"I think of her as a sort of artist. She was so good at touching those outside of herself. That is a certain talent and connection and that's what we're doing and I think all of that was just the coolest thing."
Regardless of your feelings on Twilight, it’s always nice to see actors look back on their work with a smile. It’s great to see Stewart’s career grow since her Bella days. But it’s also humbling to see that there’s still a little bit of Bella inside.