The Twilight Saga gave the careers of its main cast a big boost, and while Robert Pattinson is the best-known actor from the Cullen family, the rest of the coven has also taken part in some interesting projects since Twilight came to an end. In 2005, Stephenie Meyer shared her vision of vampires and werewolves in the novel Twilight, the first entry in a series of four novels. The core of the series was the relationship between vampire Edward Cullen and mortal Bella Swan, and although it was a very problematic pair, the Twilight series was a big success.
It didn’t take long for the Twilight novels to make the jump to the big screen, and in 2008 the Twilight fanbase expanded with the release of the first film. The Twilight Saga came to an end in 2012 with Breaking Dawn – Part 2, where Bella finally became a vampire and the Volturi left the Cullens alone. The Twilight Saga allowed fans to put a face on the characters they love and also gave the careers of the main cast a big push, particularly those of Kristen Stewart (who played Bella Swan) and Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen). Although not all actors have had the big break that Stewart and Pattinson did, they are not inactive and have appeared in more projects since Twilight came to an end.
Such is the case of the rest of the Cullen family, who appeared in all movies of the saga (even if briefly), and while not all of them have taken part in big projects since Twilight (which is understood given all the criticism that the movies got), they have given different genres a try, both on the big screen and television. Here’s what each Cullen actor (except Robert Pattinson) has done since Twilight:
Peter Facinelli – Carlisle Cullen
Peter Facinelli played Carlisle Cullen, the leader of the Cullen coven and adoptive father of Edward, Alice, Emmett, Rosalie, and Jasper. Facinelli was already a well-known name thanks to his work in movies like Can’t Hardly Wait, Riding in Cars with Boys, and TV shows like Fastlane and Six Feet Under. After the Twilight Saga came to an end, Facinelli appeared in various movies and TV shows, most notably the horror movie The Damned, the crime thriller Running with the Devil, and the TV shows Glee, American Odyssey, Supergirl, and S.W.A.T.
Elizabeth Reaser – Esme Cullen
Before Twilight, Elizabeth Reaser had appeared in a couple of movies but was best known for playing Ava/Rebecca Pope in Grey’s Anatomy. In the Twilight universe, Reaser played Esme Cullen, Carlisle’s wife and mother to Edward and the rest. Following the Twilight Saga, Reaser appears in the movies One and Two, Hello, My Name Is Doris, Ouija: Origin of Evil, and Nightmare Cinema, and the TV shows True Detective, Mad Men, Easy, Manhunt: Unabomber, Law & Order True Crime, The Handmaid’s Tale, and most recently Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House, where she played Shirley Crain.
Ashley Greene – Alice Cullen
Ashley Greene plays Alice Cullen, one of Carlisle and Esme’s adoptive children and the one who became closest to Bella even before she was turned into a vampire. Twilight was Greene’s big break, who had only appeared as an extra in two films and in small roles in a couple of TV shows. Greene has taken it easy since the Twilight Saga came to an end, appearing in movies like CBGB and In Dubious Battle, as well as the TV shows Hell’s Kitchen and Rogue. Her latest credit is the drama movie Bombshell, where she played Abby Huntsman.
Kellan Lutz – Emmett Cullen
Kellan Lutz played Emmett Cullen, Rosalie’s partner and brother to the rest of the Cullens. Emmett was the strongest in the coven, though he was defeated by Bella during her “newborn” stage. Lutz has focused only on film projects (both big and small) since Twilight, appearing in Java Heat, Syrup, a 3D animation version of Tarzan, The Legend of Hercules, The Expendables 3, Experimenter (where he played William Shatner), Extraction, Money, Science Fiction Volume One: The Osiris Child, Guardians of the Tomb, and What Men Want.
Nikki Reed – Rosalie Hale
Nikki Reed’s big break came in 2003 with the movie Thirteen, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, with whom she worked on more projects after that, like Lords of Dogtown and (of course) Twilight, where she played Rosalie. Following her time with the Cullens, Reed appeared in the films Empire State, Pawn, Enter the Dangerous Mind, Balls Out, In Your Eyes, Murder of a Cat, About Scout, Jack Goes Home, and A Sunday Horse. She also appeared in the TV shows Sleepy Hollow, Dollface, and V-Wars.
Jackson Rathbone – Jasper Hale
Jackson Rathbone played Jasper Hale, Alice’s partner and the member of the Cullen clan with the most interesting power: sense and change the emotions of those around him. Although Rathbone wasn’t a newcomer when he was cast in Twilight, it was the role that made him a widely-known name, and which helped him get the role of Sokka in The Last Airbender.
