The Twilight Saga

[dncllpyk]

I'm going to start reading Eclipse tonight. I can't wait.

[Barbara]

Salary dispute holding up 'Twilight 5' announcement

Mon May 10, 2010 @ 07:33PM PST

By Matthew Belloni

EXCLUSIVE: Summit Entertainment is working furiously to close the talent deals required to split Stephenie Meyer's fourth "Twilight" novel into two films. But an unlikely roadblock is holding up an announcement -- and could even lead to cast changes for the series' final installment.

The studio is close to finalizing agreements with leads Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, all of whom will get big raises to return for a fifth installment of the vampire romance saga. And director Bill Condon is already signed to film two "Breaking Dawn" movies, which would be shot back-to-back starting in the fall and released in November 2011 and summer 2012, respectively.

But Summit is having a harder time locking in some of the franchise's secondary characters. Deals for Peter Facinelli (who plays Carlisle Cullen) and Billy Burke (Bella's father, Charlie Swan) are done, but we're told the actors who play the Cullen kids (especially Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene) are trying to sink their teeth into bigger paydays that, at least at this point, the studio behind the billion-dollar franchise is unwilling to provide. "We may have a situation where one of them is thrown out on the street to make a point," says a source close to the dealmaking.

So are we headed for a recasting on the final "Twilight"?

There is precedent for such a tactic. After the success of the first film, Summit axed Rachelle Lefevre, who played Victoria, in part because her reps played hardball on money and scheduling. (Bryce Dallas Howard got the job instead.) Now, two films into the series, even the minor Twilighters (Lutz in particular) have become sought-after stars, so it makes sense they'd want to be paid more for the final film. But we're told that the offers from Summit -- which are said to be at least 10 times what the actors made on the first movie -- were deemed "offensive" given the mega-money the franchise has generated.

Summit declined to comment on the situation. But the studio wants to move quickly to pull the trigger on the two movies -- which it won't until the talent deals are further along -- and it isn't afraid to recast if agreements can't be reached. Plus, it has even more reason to be concerned about costs this time around. As is typical with blockbuster franchises, the "Twilight" movies are becoming more expensive with each installment. The leads are going to fare especially well if "Breaking Dawn" is split into two parts. The trio were initially signed for three films (remember, this was back when "Twilight" was a low-budget adaptation of a niche YA novel), but in the spring of 2009 -- after the first movie became an international hit -- they renegotiated all their deals so Summit could lock them for a fourth movie.

The studio then realized that "Breaking Dawn," with its 900-plus pages and narratives told from two perspectives, was dense enough to be split into two installments (as Warner Bros. announced it would do for the final "Harry Potter" book). Just one problem: The cast wasn't signed for a fifth movie. They're all huge stars now, with Lautner in particular running up his quote to the $7.5 million range, so another renegotiation commenced.

That meant ponying up big-time for the leads, which would make the final movie more expensive than the others ("Eclipse," which hits theaters June 30, is costing around $65 million, a figure sure to be dwarfed by the fourth and fifth, even if costs can be amortized by shooting them at the same time). Summit is still holding out the option of simply doing one "Breaking Dawn," although multiple sources say they'd be shocked if the fifth film doesn't happen. "This thing is gonna be two movies," one source says. "With or without the cast intact." Meyer has already signed off on the plan to make two — a key hurdle, given the approval rights she has in her deal.

Summit also is eyeing another cost-cutting measure for the final installments. A deal is currently being negotiated to move the production to Louisiana (the first was shot in Portland and the second two in Vancouver and Italy). Luring "Twilight" would be a huge "get" for the state -- and, given the tax credits, a money-saver for the studio.

"Twilight" has thus far been the rare tentpole franchise made on a non-tentpole budget. It'll be interesting to see the lengths that Summit will go to to keep it there. Booting an actor from the final installment of a successful series could be a risky move, though we're betting that as long as their precious Bella, Edward and Jacob return, fans would get over any disappointment pretty quickly.

Source

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It's bad enough they had to recast Victoria for Eclipse and thought of recasting Jacob for New Moon. I don't want them to recast Alice and Emmett. To me, Ashley and Kellan are Alice and Emmett. It would be too weird if Emmett and Alice look totally different in the second part of Breaking Dawn. I can understand that Kellan and Ashley want more money, especially with all the money the Twilight saga has generated so far (and I hope they get a raise as well) but it's not like they can earn as much as Robert, Kristen and Taylor because those three are the main characters and we see them in most scenes.

[bay girl]

I read this morning that they both want 4 million each. Apparently they had Nikki and Jackson on board with them, but they have backed out and are happy with what they're getting. Maybe they realised that the few measley minutes they get each film isnt worth the 4 mill. Who knows lol.

Anyhoo, the Eclipse Soundtrack listing is out too.....

1. Metric – “Eclipse (All Yours)”

2. Muse – “Neutron Star Collision (Love Is Forever)”

3. The Bravery – “Ours”

4. Florence + The Machine – “Heavy In Your Arms”

5. Sia – “My Love”

6. Fanfarlo – “Atlas”

7. The Black Keys – “Chop And Change”

8. The Dead Weather – “Rolling In On A Burning Tire”

9. Beck and Bat For Lashes – “Let’s Get Lost”

10. Vampire Weekend – “Jonathan Low”

11. UNKLE – “With You In My Head (featuring The Black Angels)”

12. Eastern Conference Champions – “A Million Miles An Hour”

13. Band Of Horses – “Life On Earth”

14. Cee-Lo Green – “What Part Of Forever”

15. Howard Shore Jacob's Theme

Im really excited to see an Aussie on that list. Sia is amazing, and one of my fav artists.

Oh, and apprently the first official clip from Eclipse will be out on Apple Trailers sometime within the next 2 days.

[dncllpyk]

I finished reading Eclipse awhile ago. Edward annoyed me a bit though like when he wouldn't

let Bella see Jabob

. I can't wait to see the movie

[Symphony]

I'm very excited to be going to a Twilight Convention during this year, and meeting the following;

booboo stewart [seth]

alex meraz [paul]

peter facinella [carlisle]

cameron bright [alec]

& also two new women who appear in Eclipse - Nettie & Lucy

can't wait for eclipse to come out - although I'm annoyed that Ireland is like a week after everyone else

hope it means that we get a good fan event / premiere!!

[dncllpyk]

Some people in America went on the Oprah Winfrey show and got to see Eclipse before anyone else. I'm so jealous. My Dad watched New Moon last night he said it was alright.

[bay girl]

The Salary dispute has been sorted out. Kellen and Ashley have both agreed to 1.25 million for each movie.

Thank god that got sorted. I would have hated to see them replaced by new actors.

Oh, and Rob's cut his hair again. I think it might be for a new movie that he's doing with Reese Witherspoon.

[dncllpyk]

Thats good that the salary dispute has been sorted out. I got Famous magazine yesterday and I read in it that Kristen, Rob and Taylor were going to quit if they didn't pay the salary that Kellan and Ashley thought they deserved. Why do they have to be so greedy most of us would be lucky to see that amount of money in a lifetime.

[bay girl]

Kristen and Taylor are apparently coming to Australia for the release of Eclipse. They are going to be at Luna Park in Sydney on May 31. Apparently they will be participating in a Q&A with fans. It will be broadcasted in selected cinema's around the country so that those of us that dont get to see it in person, will still get to see it.

Damn, wish it was Rob. I'd definitely hop on a plane and head down to Sydney if it was him. lol

[dncllpyk]

I doubt our cinemas will show it. Even if they did I wouldnt go anywhere near there will be so many people. I think I'm going to wait a couple of weeks to see Eclipse after its relesed to avoid the rush.