Taylor Lautner Says Twilight Initially Considered Recasting Jacob In New Moon

Can you envision the scene “Bella, where the hell have you been, loca?!” being delivered by someone other than Taylor Lautner? Well, if the casting team of the Twilight had their way, a different actor would have portrayed Jacob Black in Twilight: New Moon.

Indeed! Despite Taylor Lautner embodying the character flawlessly in the original Twilight movie, and despite millions of fans worldwide having already embraced Taylor, the studio had intentions to replace Jacob.

Taylor elaborated: “The original plan was to cast a 16-year-old, which they did—I was 16 at the time—and then they were considering casting a guy in his mid-20s to continue as Jacob for the rest of the series. I had to contend for my role.”

Detailing his efforts to secure the role, Taylor expressed: “Luckily, I began the [gym] regimen right after we wrapped the first film. I knew if I wanted to continue as him, I had to make a change.”

Causing Taylor anxiety about losing the role? This is even more distressing than jokingly naming someone’s daughter after a mythical creature.

Taylor added that his team supported him in fighting for the role: “When we received that call, my team asked, ‘Have you seen his recent appearance?’ They replied, ‘No, why?’ ‘Well, you might want to arrange a meeting with him.’ I had been diligently working out for about 9 months by that time and had gained around 20 to 25 pounds.”

Taylor recounted: “They were taken aback, but they didn’t make it simple. I still had to audition again. Thankfully, Kristen insisted, ‘You’re not auditioning with any casting director. You’re doing it with me.’ It was very kind of her. Everything fell into place.”

Fortunately, everything turned out fine in the end, but what if it hadn’t?! Twilight: New Moon without Taylor? Unimaginable.