Netflix's animated Twilight TV show will be a retelling of Stephenie Meyer's novels, previously adapted into a film series starring Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen and Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan. Now, their replacements have been found.
According to Knight Edge Media (via SFFGazette.com), Julian Grey (Fear The Walking Dead) and Sadie Stanley (Karate Kid: Legends) have been cast as the reboot's leads, taking over from Pattinson and Stewart. The hunt is also on for the rest of the cast, including the franchise's third lead, Jacob Black (portrayed on the big screen by Taylor Lautner).
Meyer will executive produce Twilight, with Sinead Daly (The Get Down, Reservation Road) serving as showrunner. Lynn Wang is on board as supervising director.
In Twilight, Isabella Swan's move to Forks—a small, perpetually rainy town in Washington—could have been the most boring move she ever made. But once she meets the mysterious and alluring Edward Cullen, Bella's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn.
So far, Edward has managed to keep his vampire identity a secret in the small community he lives in, but now nobody is safe, especially Bella, the person Edward now holds most dear.
Earlier this week, Lionsgate confirmed that two seasons of Twilight have been ordered by Netflix. Kevin Beggs, Chair of the Lionsgate Television Group and Lionsgate Chief Content Integration Officer, also detailed Meyer's involvement with the project and what they'll adapt.
"Stephanie’s a huge fan of television, all genres, as we’ve come to get to know her better, and animation specifically, which really led directly to the adaptation of Midnight Sun, which takes the point of view of the Cullen family and retells a story that we know from a different POV," Beggs said. "That’s a two-season adult animation order at Netflix."
"Stephanie and her team are very hands-on, really running the process along with us and Netflix," he continued. "We have high expectations and hope, and, more importantly, are engaging our audience and her audience in a continuation and expansion of her universe."
With two seasons already ordered, Netflix clearly has confidence in this latest take on Meyer's hugely popular books. However, casting will be crucial, and the series appears to be off to a strong start. The animated format should allow the series to explore the world of Twilight in new ways, while Midnight Sun offers an opportunity to revisit familiar events from a very different perspective.
It's unclear when we'll get a first look at the Twilight animated series, but work now appears to be well underway, so it hopefully won't be too much longer.