Culture

Bill Condon Defends Killing Fan-Favourite Twilight Characters, Says Criticism Is ‘Kind Of Secret Badge Of Honour’

By News18,Sahas,Yatamanyu Narain

Copyright news18

Bill Condon Defends Killing Fan-Favourite Twilight Characters, Says Criticism Is ‘Kind Of Secret Badge Of Honour’

Twilight fans were sent into shock when their favourite characters appeared to meet their ends in the climax of 2012’s Breaking Dawn – Part 2, only to be revealed later that it was a mere vision. The scene raised questions among the fans for its brutal killings of vampires like Carlisle Cullen and Jasper Hale, and werewolves Seth and Leah Clearwater.
During a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Bill Condon revealed his decision to add the scenes of killing, which were not in Stephenie Meyer’s 2008 book that the movie was adapted from.
Bill Condon on Killing Major Characters
Pegging his latest movie, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Condon stated, “There was such a dedicated audience waiting for it, and you’re in dialogue with that audience knowing that we were going to do this incredibly cruel thing of killing off all of their beloved characters.”
He added, “That, to me, was like, ‘Oh, I have to, because I just want to be there the first time we show it.’ I’ve never, ever heard a scream as loud and lasting as when we cut off Carlisle’s head.”
Bill Condon Addresses Criticism
He further addressed the criticism and backlash he faced for adding such gruesome scenes and stated that Twilight became “such a target for people, and people felt superior to it.” He went on explaining, “I thought, ‘God, you were really missing the point,’ because this is a big franchise that is in on the joke.”
Talking about Breaking Dawn – Part 2, Condon stated, “There was emotion, there was beauty, there was humour and visceral pleasure that I try to have in anything I make.”
The Beauty and the Beast filmmaker revealed that the pleasure quotient he tries to bring in his works is not at the centre of the cinema culture, and therefore people will resent and detest it, “But it becomes a kind of secret badge of honour,” he added.
The Twilight Saga Re-Release
The fan-favourite vampire teen romance movie series is all set to head back to the big screen for a limited theatrical re-release to mark the franchise’s 20th anniversary. Lionsgate and Fathom Events joined hands to bring The Twilight Saga back to cinemas across the United States from October 29 to November 2, 2025, giving fans a unique opportunity to relive the iconic love story between Bella Swan and Edward Cullen. The full schedule is as follows:
October 29, 2025: Twilight
October 30, 2025: New Moon
October 31, 2025: Eclipse
November 1, 2025: Breaking Dawn – Part 1
November 2, 2025: Breaking Dawn – Part 2