LA Times Presents: The Wolf Pack..... Twilight Style

From The LA Times:

The 1950s gave us the Rat Pack. The ‘80s, the Brat Pack. These days, the Wolf Pack is roaming the film scene.

Although the "Twilight" franchise may have helped spur the vampire craze with the Cullen brood, the saga's gang of shape-shifters is bringing sexy back to werewolves. And in "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," which hits theaters June 30, that's no different.

"The Cullens are very reserved," said Alex Meraz, who plays Wolf Pack member Paul. "They're vampires, but they're not out killing people. They're not what they're meant to be. Whereas the Wolf Pack, we're through and through animals. We're frisky. We're fun. There's something sexy about that."

In the third installment of the franchise, the band of brotherly (and sisterly, as we'll see) hirsute creatures joins forces with its rivals, the Cullens, after Seattle is plagued by a series of killings caused by an army of newborn vampires.

But since their computer-generated alter egos seem to be getting most of the screen time, here's a chance to get to know the actors pre-transformation:


Alex Meraz (Paul)

At 25, Meraz is still adjusting to the whirlwind that comes with being in a blockbuster franchise. But don't be fooled. He's not complaining.

"Bring it on," he said. "I was working really hard before, and it just didn't seem to pay off. I'm just really grateful for it all."

Before he caught the acting "virus," Meraz — who admitted his first viewing of "Twilight" was a bootleg version — demonstrated his artistic tendencies through dance, martial arts and painting. In fact, he still breaks out the paint and brushes to maintain his sanity through all the "Twilight" pandemonium.

But it's that pandemonium that gets him amped when talking about the movie.

"The fans are going to love this film," he said. "I didn't get my chance to touch anybody in ‘New Moon.' This time I go at it with Emmett [ Kellan Lutz]. I give him a nice bitch slap. But I'm in wolf form, so maybe it's a big paw slap?

"Oh, and there's a lot more action. It's more Paul wolf. You're going to see my wolf form doing a lot of stuff. You'll just see me running around shirtless once and a while."

So what of all those topless scenes?

"I have a newfound respect for women. I have to keep my figure. Girls are telling me to take my shirt off. It's like, ‘Hello! I'm a person, too!' "


Julia Jones (Leah Clearwater)

Bryce Dallas Howard isn't the only new face to join the burgeoning ensemble cast. Jones will make her debut to the franchise as Leah Clearwater, the scorned and bitter sole female member of the Wolf Pack.

"She's really a tough character," said Jones, 29. "She's pretty angry about a lot of things that she has every right to be angry about. She's miserable and lost and trying to cope internally without a lot of help. And she lashes out quite a bit."

Jones may not be a household name just yet, having appeared in independent films and a few episodes of "ER," but that will surely change for the Boston native come June. And for the woman who said she knew she wanted to be an actress after playing Michael Darling in a production of "Peter Pan" as a child, it'll be a learning process.

"I don't know," Jones said. "I'm just trying to take it easy while I can. It's going to be a new thing to figure out how to navigate this craze. I'm doing my best to prepare myself for all of it."


Chaske Spencer (Sam Uley)

Spencer reprises his role as werewolf Sam Uley, the sometimes disgruntled leader of the Wolf Pack.

Although Spencer hasn't exactly gotten used to the global attention — "It's cool, the recognition. But it's work. I know how to keep my life private" — he said he doesn't regret the decision to join the wildly popular franchise.

"There's a lot more offers," said Spencer, 35. "As an actor, that's all you can hope for: more chances to keep it going."

Spencer is in Arizona shooting his new film "Shouting Secrets," about a successful young writer in Los Angeles who is called back to his Native American background to tend to his ailing mother.

With the media blitz already in full effect for "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," Spencer said working on something completely different is a way to escape. But there's no escaping the constant pleas for spoilers from the new flick. And like his character's quiet, shadow-like wolf form, he only gives a whisper of details.

"This time around, Sam has to put his ego aside to take on this new breed of vampires," Spencer said. "There's a lot of new relationships being formed."



via Twilightish

Peter Facinelli is a 'Twilight' doctor who is in demand

Peter Facinelli strolled into a Los Angeles television studio on a recent Saturday morning for another "Twilight"-related appearance. But you wouldn't know he was part of a worldwide phenomenon. He wasn't flanked on either side by brawny Hollywood-standard security guards. And there were no screaming "Twi-hards" lurking nearby. Just Peter and his backpack. And he prefers it that way.

As "New Moon," the latest installment in the massively successful "Twilight" saga, continues its reign in theaters -- it has grossed more than $230 million since its Nov. 20 release -- Facinelli, who plays Dr. Carlisle Cullen, the patriarch of the Cullen clan, still finds the frenzy a little daunting.

"There's not many movies -- I can't even think of five -- that people would camp out for," Facinelli, 36, said before going in front of the camera. "It can be overwhelming. I feel very fortunate to be a part of something like that. Not many actors can say that."

Facinelli -- who has three daughters and is married to "Beverly Hills, 90210" alum Jennie Garth -- grew up in Queens, N.Y. He began his acting career 15 years ago, with bit parts in TV shows, then burst onto the scene as a jock in the film "Can't Hardly Wait." The 1998 teen flick, which starred '90s darling Jennifer Love Hewitt, didn't exactly rake in "Twilight" numbers, but it helped launch the careers of such stars as Seth Green, Jason Segel and Selma Blair.

"Things were different then," Facinelli said. "We were young and in this movie teens were watching, but there wasn't paparazzi out taking all of our pictures. Things weren't so intense 10 years ago. I remember when someone would take a picture, it'd be three days before it would surface in the tabloids at the grocery store. Now, 30 seconds after a picture is taken, it's on the Internet; and 45 seconds later, hundreds of people have commented on it."

He went on to star in Fox's short-lived series "Fastlane" and has appeared in the HBO series "Six Feet Under" and FX's "Damages." When his agents approached him about taking the role in a "vampire movie," Facinelli was hesitant.

"I was like, 'Um, no,' " Facinelli recalled. "I was proud of my roles up to that point. I was thinking a gory, B slasher movie. You know, vampires in caves who turn into bats. It just wasn't my cup of tea. But I read the first book and I couldn't put it down. If I could have made myself a vampire, I would have. That's how much I wanted the role."

Luckily, no skin was punctured in his casting for the part. Now two films into the saga, Facinelli has seen his life -- and career -- go into overdrive.

"I'm a lot busier," Facinelli said. "I'm traveling a lot more. And I'm meeting a lot more people. I've been acting for 15 years so I've sort of always had a fan base. But this is a whole other level of fans. They're die-hard."

In between his "medical" commitments -- aside from playing bloodsucking Dr. Cullen in the "Twilight" saga, he plays a human doctor on Showtime's "Nurse Jackie" -- Facinelli is communicating with those fans. He can usually be spotted finger-deep on his iPhone, blasting tweets to his million-plus followers on a daily -- if not, hourly -- basis.

"It's my way of having control over what people know about me," Facinelli said.

It's a savvy attempt to combat the hysteria. While his young "Twilight" costars grapple with the media whirlwind attached to the vampire saga's success, a slightly older Facinelli has a different outlook.

"It is easier for me to deal with now," he said. "I can't compare to Rob [Pattinson] and Kristen [Stewart] because I'm not with them on a day-to-day basis. But I can say that for me, when I was 23 or 24, I wouldn't have been able to handle this level of success. Being put under a microscope, I wouldn't have been able to process it. As you get older, you constantly try to find yourself, and in my early 20s I didn't have a full sense of me. But now, I've been with me for a lot longer."

As the thirst for all things "Twilight" reaches staggering heights, Facinelli is having fun with the brand. He recently launched Vampire Transformer, an iPhone application (also compatible with the iPod touch) that allows users to morph anyone into a vampire with the touch of a finger.

"This is what I spend my days doing," he said, browsing through his vampire gallery featuring images of his "bitten" daughters and wife. "Any time I have a free moment."

Those free moments are becoming increasingly rare, but that's OK.

"I'm enjoying this while it lasts," he said. " 'Twilight' is another gig for me and I'll move on and do other gigs. And, hopefully, the fans will come out and watch those, too."

source: LATimes.com