Robert Pattinson Put off His ‘Twilight’ Audition for ‘Ages’
Prior to joining the Twilight cast, Robert Pattinson had landed a coveted role in the Harry Potter franchise. Portraying Cedric Diggory gave Pattinson the opportunity to get hands-on film experience and cemented his decision to pursue acting professionally. And while the actor had every intention of being in a small indie film that nobody would see, his Twilight audition would set his life on a completley different course.
Robert Pattinson bought unique energy to the ‘Twilight’ cast
These days, it’s hard to picture anyone else as Edward Cullen. Pattinson bought a melancholy, dark humor, to the vampire, making the role distinct. And while being cast in Twilight would completely transform Pattinson’s life, he admits that he put off his audition for as long as he could. In an interview with TIME, Pattinson revealed that he was intimidated by how the character of Edward was described. Initially, he didn’t think he was the right fit for the role.
‘The Batman’ star avoided his ‘Twilight’ audition for as long as possible
“If you read the book, you know he’s the perfect man, ideal man,” Pattinson explained. “If you’re a guy, you have certain ideals about what you think is attractive. And that’s why I didn’t go into it for ages, because I thought I’d end up being silly in the audition. I’d be posing. I guess I tried to ignore every aspect of the confident hero of the story. And I played the extreme opposite. It didn’t end up being that in the film.”
But what was it that finally made Pattinson go in for his Twilight audition, to begin with? A great deal of it likely comes down to financial reasons. At the time, he’d used up all the money he’d made from his work on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Pattinson was living on his agent’s couch and knew he needed to make some money. Eventually, he yielded and went to his Twilight audition, but he still felt a great deal of imposter syndrome.
Pattinson assumed a model would be cast in the role of Edward
“I was literally embarrassed walking into the audition,” Pattinson shared with Vanity Fair. “I had no idea how to play Edward at all. I thought that even going into the audition was completely pointless because they were just going to cast a model or something. I felt it was kind of arrogant of me to even go in. I was almost having a full-on panic attack before I went to the screen test.”
But despite Pattinson’s nerves and doubts, he managed to nail his Twilight audition. Playing Edward over the course of five movies would ensure that the actor would never have to worry about finances again. Furthermore, it would help set the foundation for the career that he has built today.
