While Harry Potter fans have been split on the news that the franchise is set for a television reboot for Max, both fans and critics of The Twilight Saga have been shocked by the recent news that the franchise will undergo a TV reboot of its own; only this time, it’ll take on a completely new form in animation. Since Stephanie Meyer first introduced the world to her creation in 2005, the public consensus of the Twilight books and their film adaptations has been incredibly divisive. Some people love them both with and without irony, while others hate them and see no redeemable qualities; there is no in-between.
In the twelve years since the last film installment, despite the amount of negative criticism that the film franchise received for its quality of film-making, some may have forgotten just how much of a global phenomenon Twilight as a whole was. An animated series can potentially appeal to both lovers and haters of the franchise. It could revive the interest of longtime fans, offer a completely fresh take that even non-fans can enjoy, and introduce Edward, Bella, and Jacob’s supernatural love triangle to a whole new generation.Based on Stephanie Meyer’s best-selling book series, The Twilight Saga tells the story of a romance between Bella Swan, a human teenage girl, and Edward Cullen, an eternally youthful-looking vampire. While their romance intensifies, they not only become the target of an entire vampire army, but werewolf Jacob Black’s feelings for Bella also add further complications to their forbidden love. As one would imagine from a Human, Vampire, Werewolf love triangle story, the overall reception to the films averaged mixed-to-negative at best. They were heavily criticized for the quality of their writing, direction, visual effects, and overall tone, but the main actors also received plenty of scrutiny for how their performances turned out. Both Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson have gone on to receive high praise for their wide acting range in more esteemed projects (with Stewart even being nominated for an Academy Award in 2022 for her portrayal of Princess Diana in the film Spencer); but for some time both during and even after the conclusion of the films, whether it was due to the direction or the material they were given to work with, they had garnered a reputation by the public as being bad actors.
The criticisms eventually found their way over to the film’s source material as well. When it comes to adapting other source materials for the screen, changes are almost always needed. Given just how largely faithful the films were to Meyer’s works, even certain fans of the books began to acknowledge how much certain character arcs and plot threads were poorly handled and overlooked. As a result, many began to see an unintentional hilarity and unfulfilled potential to the premise of its story, especially when translated into film. With the animated reboot, it might be able to use its new visual format to bring new life to bland characters and a new perspective on the story that could change it for the better.Ever since its creation, animation has been the go-to storytelling medium for things that are impossible to pull off properly in live-action. While The Twilight Saga took its premise far too seriously, which ironically resulted in its unintentional hilarity, removing it from the bounds and limitations of live-action could be the key to reworking it into something that could not only be more visually engaging but also embrace the fun of its supernatural premise. The romance and intensity of certain moments could still work where they need to be, but the wide variety of expressions and tones in animation provides a perfect opportunity to add a bit more humor and self-awareness. There are several animated series that manage to find the perfect balance between legitimate drama and humor, one example being Avatar: The Last Airbender. It was a show that took its story seriously, with engaging character drama and intense action sequences; but there were also several character moments big and small throughout the show that provided a lighthearted sense of comic relief and ultimately made it even more engaging than it already was.
Other shows like Invincible and even several anime series have all mastered this balance in their storytelling, using their writing and visuals to elicit emotional thrills and investment as well as big laughs from their viewers. If Twilight could potentially do the same, it could capture a new generation of fans, revive the public’s interest, and completely redefine the franchise in a big way. With Meyer’s latest book from 2020, Midnight Sun, retelling the events of the first installment from Edward’s perspective rather than Bella’s, perhaps the show could take some inspiration from it to be even more different. There have been other animated TV adaptations of hit movies that, by breaking away
