Saturday, November 14, 2009

'Twilight' stars winning hearts, minds, Maxim


Kellan Lutz at the Trump Tower in Chicago. (Nov 11, 2009/Tribune photo by Nancy Stone)




"Twilight" probably isn't a hot topic in the boys' locker room or sports bars, but co-stars Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene, who play Emmett and Alice Cullen respectively, have noticed an increase in male fans for the vampire franchise.

Lutz spotted some male fans during his appearance with Greene at Fox Valley Mall in Aurora on Tuesday and Greene said a few have approached her with marriage proposals.

"They're out there," said Lutz, 24, on Wednesday while promoting "The Twilight Saga: New Moon," which opens Nov. 20. "They got dragged to the first one by their girlfriends and then they saw it's not just a chick flick.

"(The franchise) gets increasingly more male-friendly. In 'New Moon,' there's a lot of action. We've got guys transforming into wolves, kicking vampire butt. 'Eclipse' (the third film in the series, which comes out June 2010) has extreme stunts. We did so much preparation and training."

Speaking of male-friendly, Greene will appear on the cover of December's Maxim. She admitted she was a bit cautious going into the photo shoot with the men's magazine.
"I had watchdogs with me because Maxim is kind of touchy," said Greene, 22. "You never know how it's going to turn out. We told them I'm part of this franchise that has a young audience and we wanted it to be beautiful and classy versus supersexy. It turned out really great."



Ashley Greene and Kellan Lutz at the Westfield Fox Valley Mall on November 10, 2009. (Tasos Katopodis, Getty Images)

Expectations are high for the "Twilight" sequel. The first film earned $383.7 million worldwide at the box office on a $37 million budget and made it difficult for franchise star Robert Pattinson to go anywhere without security.

When asked what Pattinson-related question they get the most, Lutz and Greene simultaneously responded "Do you know him?"

But don't feel too bad Pattinson's co-stars. Lutz will appear in the highly anticipated "A Nightmare on Elm Street" remake, which was filmed in the Chicago area in the summer. Greene, besides being a cover girl, has an increased role in "New Moon."

"I went into the second one with the weight off my shoulders," Greene said. "With the first one, I didn't know if fans would love or hate me, or if I'd do the character justice. With the second one, I knew I had a support system. I got to build on the character."

Greene said she would have been a fan of the franchise even if she wasn't in the movies ("I would have been there screaming with everyone else for Edward Cullen"). Lutz? He would have taken a little longer to come around.

"I don't think I would have jumped out of my chair after seeing the trailers for the first time because I'm more of an action junkie," Lutz said. "But I think my sister would have wanted me to take her because she's not old enough to drive. I probably would be like 'This is a cool movie' and would've looked forward to seeing the other ones."


Kellan Lutz at the Trump Tower in Chicago. (Nov 11, 2009/Tribune photo by Nancy Stone)

Before letting Lutz and Greene get on with their busy day, I had to ask the two young stars the million dollar question: "Seriously, do you know Robert Pattinson?"

"He refuses to work with us," responded Greene.

"Yeah," added Lutz. "Why won't he talk to us?"

Heads up: Greene will appear at Hollywood Blvd. Cinema in Woodridge on Nov. 20 and Hollywood Palms Cinema in Naperville on Nov. 21 and 22. Lutz will appear at Hollywood Palms on Nov. 20 and Hollywood Blvd. on Nov. 21 and 22.

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