One of this century’s most famous – or according to some, infamous – on-screen love stories still has secrets to reveal. The third film in the larger-than-life Twilight series premiered in 2010, but even the most fanatic of Twihards may still not have picked up on some curious behind-the-scenes tidbits. There are plenty of unanticipated quotes, casting decisions, relationships, and on-set obstacles that provide new insight into the Twilight world. No movie has an entirely smooth trip to the box office, and the making of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse should prove that this colossal film franchise was no exception.
Behind our favourite bloodsucker clans and wolf packs, there were some human moments, emotions, and blunders. While fans debated if Bella (a human teenager) should end up with Edward (the century-old vampire) or Jacob (the wolf shapeshifter), the actors and producers had a different set of concerns. Whether it was real -life drama or unforeseen hiccups along the road, there were many things going on behind the scenes while Eclipse was preparing to hit cinema screens worldwide.
We’ve dug up some surprising details from the set, the editing room, and the red carpet. Some are simply amusing and unexpected, but others considerably affected how aspects of the film turned out. Let’s take a look at what was going on beyond the silver screen.
Here are 20 Crazy Details Behind The Making Of Eclipse.
20 The "ridiculous" deleted scene
Kristen Stewart was not impressed with the very first scene she shot for Eclipse. During a flashback sequence, Bella envisions herself as the chief’s wife from a Quileute folk tale. She heroically saves her village from a vampire by stabbing herself and creating a distraction.
This was likely meant to represent Bella’s desire to save the Cullens from fighting Victoria’s newborn vampire army on her behalf. It must have been pretty bad, though, because we don’t even get to see it in the DVD's deleted scenes. The dramatic intent may have been overblown, or they realized casting a white woman in such a role was in poor taste. Whatever the case may be, it’s no wonder this scene was deleted after test audiences laughed at out loud.
19 Nikki Reed thought the cast had too many stunts
With so many fight scenes, the movie naturally required a lot of stunt work. Vampire and wolf conflicts aren't exactly routine Hollywood action scenes to shoot. Reed, who plays Rosalie Cullen, complained about how exhausting it was to perform superhuman stunts in the cold.
As the vampires were suspended from cables in order to soar through trees, it was a trying task for actors to look in control. Reed was not a fan of shooting stunts in the rain while trying to keep the heavy vampire makeup from running down her face. The actress also mentioned that there were a great number of stunts to complete in a short period of time. The work, of course, produced some spectacular scenes, but sounds like a lot of effort for mere mortals.
18 Taylor Lautner carried Kristen Stewart for a day
A rig was meant to carry Stewart to shoot a scene in which Jacob carries Bella down a dirt path. However, production noticed problems as they began filming. Despite strong preparation, including the creation of a specialized platform molded to Stewart’s frame, the movement didn’t appear natural on screen. The team was forced to improvise, and Lautner immediately volunteered to carry her himself.
The only problem was that shooting one scene often takes an entire day. Lautner sucked up the pain as he repeatedly walked down the same road and recited his lines. In the end, production still got all of their desired camera angles, but it took Lautner a while to recover.
17 Drew Barrymore was considered to direct
She did not end up getting the job, but talk of her taking on the role was more than just a rumor. After switching up directors for every other Twilight film, it was no surprise that Summit Entertainment was on the hunt for a fresh face. Barrymore was enthusiastic about the opportunity, saying, “Oh, I wish that I was [directing it]! I adore that project and I adore the team that’s making it…”
Though she was among a small group of candidates who were considered, producers finally decided on David Slade for the position. Barrymore could have been a big name that would have added to the hype surrounding the film, but she certainly didn’t have the resume that other directors did.
16 Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner kept cracking up on set
Edward and Jacob were constantly pitted against each other as two opposing sides of a love triangle, but the actors themselves had a totally different dynamic to their relationship. It’s hard to imagine while watching the movie, but the actors made some fun memories on set while filming the infamous tent scene.
Edward and Jacob are forced into close quarters and have a heated discussion about caring for Bella, but while shooting the scene Pattinson and Lautner were constantly joking around. Despite having to hate each other on screen for three straight movies, they still found it difficult to maintain animosity between the two characters.
15 Jacob and Bella's kiss "wasn't awkward"
Filming the scene went well, according to Taylor Lautner. Fans eagerly awaited Eclipse for Jacob and Bella’s first real kiss, which took place on a secluded mountaintop. Seeing as Bella only kisses Edward during the previous two films, there was potential for awkward tension while shooting the scene.
For Lautner, it was merely different to kiss his friend and co-star, not uncomfortable. While Lautner was nonchalant about the scene, Stewart admitted to being nervous beforehand. In any case, the moment marks a refreshing change of pace as Bella explores what she could have had with Jacob if Edward wasn't the love of her life.
14 Why Victoria was recast
Rachelle Lefevre played Victoria for the first two movies in the Twilight series, but her contract was terminated abruptly. The unfortunate reason behind this had nothing to do with her performance, as she is a talented actress. Instead, she ran into a bit of bad luck by making a 10-day commitment to the film Barney’s Version.
Lefevre argued that the production company said she could take short-term contracts, so she accepted the role. However, Summit Entertainment reported that she failed to give them enough notice to arrange the filming schedule around her needs. It just so happened that the dates for shooting scenes involving Victoria overlapped with Lefevre’s other film schedule. It was jarring for fans when Bryce Dallas Howard stepped in and took over the role in Eclipse.
13 The deleted scene of Jacob and Bella growing old
This was meant to come out of Bella’s imagination after her and Jacob’s second kiss. She projects herself into the future and sees the two of them together decades down the road, implying the possibility of a life with Jacob. While the scene could have been a real treat for Team Jacob fans, it never made it to post-production.
However, this decision had nothing to do with the scene itself. Director David Slade described major problems with the prosthetic makeup used to age the actors. The team realized that, since it didn’t appear natural or believable, the scene could have been another flop with unintended humor.
12 Kristen Stewart wore a hairpiece
Before filming Eclipse, Stewart starred as Joan Jett in The Runaways. She had to cut her hair into a choppy mullet, which is a far cry from Bella Swan’s girl-next-door look. A wig was the only option to give Bella those flowing brown locks of the first two movies.
However, the wig didn’t look as natural as the hair and makeup department would have hoped. The weird thing is that nobody noticed until after the film had gone through editing. Test audiences pointed out moments in which Stewart’s wig looked off, or even went askew. Some scenes had to be reshot completely, all because of a hairpiece. Yikes!
11 Jacob's obsession with being shirtless
Given that the previous film was dark and heavy, Eclipse provided a necessary change of direction with jokes about Jacob’s near-constant state of shirtlessness. In the eyes of producer Wyck Godfrey, it was better to lighten the mood after past mistakes. He described New Moon as “such a serious, depressing movie that people felt we had lost a little humor of the books.”
Producers decided to roll with the fact that audiences had ridiculed Jacob’s inability to put on a shirt. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to wear clothing when you’re regularly bursting into wolf form and overheating easily even as a human, but this didn’t stop Lautner’s shirtless state from becoming a running joke. Instead of reducing his shirtless appearances in Eclipse, the writers grasped the opportunity to add lines that emphasized them.
10 Each vampire had a custom fighting style
Fights between supernatural creatures certainly need to appear extraordinary on screen. The film achieves this not only with special effects, but also with choreographed fights tailored to vampire combat. In order not to make Eclipse look like a Kung-Fu movie, the cast did not perform generic martial arts techniques. After all, vampires must have moves in their arsenal bigger and better than a boxing stance.
The vampires each had their own unique fighting style that reflected aspects of their personality. Alice Cullen’s agility-based skills mirrored her airy nature, while Emmett Cullen’s brute strength was the main focus of his technique.
9 Robert Pattinson saw Bella as tough
Impressed by his then-girlfriend’s acting ability, Robert Pattinson thought Kristen Stewart made Bella less of a damsel in the film compared to her portrayal in the book. She easily compares to the character on a physical level with her small frame and stature, but Pattinson thought Stewart brought something to the role beyond Bella’s obvious weaknesses.
Bella’s actions in the film were still limited before her eventual vampire transformation. Of course, being a particularly frail human amongst multiple groups of mythical creatures doesn’t offer much wiggle room. Yet maybe it was Stewart’s naturally severe presence that gave the impression of a Bella having tougher exterior.
8 Kellan Lutz accidentally hit a castmate
As the biggest guy in the cast, Lutz threw many punches in different fight scenes to represent his character’s offensive tactics. Emmett Cullen is known for being "the muscle" of his family and so brawling scenes were inevitable.
Though the vampire battles were well-rehearsed, there is always room for error. Unfortunately, it was his castmate and on-screen brother who was on the receiving end of one of those errors. Lutz (Emmett) accidentally punched Jackson Rathbone (Jasper) in the head while filming the scene in which the Cullen family practice for upcoming combat. At least the actors themselves are only human, so Rathbone likely made a quick recovery.
7 Taylor Lautner acted out Jacob's wolf form
Jacob can transform into a wolf at will, but producing this effect on screen was especially challenging. Normally, the editors simply used CGI to animate the wolf version of Jacob and the rest of his pack. Yet there was one intimate scene between Bella and Jacob in which Lautner himself played the wolf. He acted out the scene in its entirety wearing a grey suit that editors could later overlay with special effects.
The wolf animation was transposed overtop of the actor in order to maintain a more genuine portrayal of his facial qualities and expressions. It also gave audiences a more tangible sense of Bella and Jacob’s connection.
6 The director refused to record DVD commentary
For Twihards, the DVD commentary track is a treasure trove of extra information from the producers and actors themselves. There are two separate narrations of Eclipse, yet director David Slade did not participate in either. Instead, there is one track with author Stephanie Meyer and producer Wyck Godfrey, and another with stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson.
While fans appreciate behind-the-scenes details and anecdotes about the film’s production, Slade found commentating for a previous film to be an “unsatisfactory experience.” He felt strongly that summarizing over a year’s worth of work into small narrations was not something he was willing to do again.
5 Stephenie Meyer was picky about kiss scenes
It makes sense for the writer of a series to be fussy about the way her work is represented on-screen. For the Eclipse author, this was especially true when it came to both of Jacob and Bella’s kiss scenes. The first one is hardly a romantic moment, as Bella tries to take a swing at Jacob for coming on too strong, but Meyer still had strong opinions on how it should go.
She was not hesitant to debate with the director, but in the end it worked out. Slade acknowledged the disagreements, but said “there were only discussions to get to a point where everybody was comfortable.”
4 Robert Pattinson grew out his eyebrows
This might be the answer to why Pattinson looks slightly different in Eclipse than in the preceding movies. The change was so minimal that not many picked up on it or could pinpoint exactly what it was. Edward had rocked some well-shaped eyebrows in Twilight and New Moon that amplified his sleek vampire image. The look was not a personal choice, but something he did especially for the role. Along with the heavy white makeup and bright colour contacts, the eyebrows gave Pattinson a pretty distinct look.
They are considerably bushier in Eclipse, though, which brought Edward closer to Pattinson's more scruffy everyday appearance.
3 Dakota Fanning was studying for the ACT on set
While Fanning’s character Jane is a fearsome member of the Volturi-- the powerful coven who police the vampire world), Fanning herself was a high school student during the film’s making. Since she was just 16 years old during the production of Eclipse, Fanning wrote the ACT shortly before the film’s release. She missed a fan convention attended by the rest of the cast in order to take the standardized test alongside other university applicants.
“I didn’t know one question on the science section,” she said. Although, playing a centuries-old immortal who can mentally inflict pain is a pretty good built-in excuse.
2 Filming locations became tourist traps
Despite the books and films being set in Forks, Washington, Eclipse was filmed in the streets and forests of Vancouver, Canada. After the film's release, companies in Vancouver offered van tours of filming sites that were not private property, attracting people from many different countries.
Fans came from as far as Australia, England, Brazil, and Mexico to witness exact spots in the forest that appeared in the background of the film. The tour companies pinpointed where the actors were standing in specific scenes, and even went as far as to indicate exact camera angles. This is as close as many fans could get to living their Twilight dreams.
1 The real-life romance was important to producers
It’s no secret that Pattinson and Stewart were dating during the filming of Eclipse, as their photos were all over the tabloids. While producer Wyck Godfrey didn’t think about how this stirred up public anticipation for the film, he was concerned with how their relationship status could affect the production process. He believed it could alter life on set if the couple broke up, and desperately wanted them to stay together so it wouldn’t be “awkward.”
Preserving the duo’s natural chemistry for two more movies was a key concern, especially within a franchise that rests on an intense love story. Now we all know that didn't happen, but both Breaking Dawn movies smashed the box office regardless.
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