Twilight: Join the Cullen Family

Twilight Book Cover (9)

Background

Twilight: a saga we have all heard of at at least one point in our lives, and a saga that has changed many. The saga follows Bella Swan and her relationship with Edward Cullen- a vampire. Being that Bella is a human and Edward is a vampire, there are many obstacles the couple face together. For example, rival vampires hunting Bella, Bella being welcomed into the Cullen family, the Volturi (vampire royalty) keeping a close account on the two, and much much more. Vampires are not the only fictional beings in the story, and werewolves are also brought to life by author Stephanie Meyer. Bella's childhood best friend, Jacob Black, is a part of werewolf tribe- sworn enemies of vampires. In total there are 5 books: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, and recently published Midnight Sun. The books garnered amazing success, and the saga was soon turned into a movie franchise. Breaking Dawn was split into 2 parts, Breaking Dawn Part 1 and 2, and due to Midnight Sun being just recently released, that stands as a book alone. The saga turning into a franchise was probably one of the smartest moves the Twilight team could have taken, as the movies attracted those who are not readers, opening up the door to new fans, and making Twilight a staple in today's pop culture. 

The Fandom

While the fandom is prevalent on many platforms, the biggest site is Reddit. Specifically the thread "r/twilight" (4). In this group, members are able to share memes about the saga, form plot, character/relationship, movie, and book discussions, while also being able to showcase fan content such as amazing artwork and edits. On Reddit, users are also able to "upvote" posts, which is basically a way to make  posts more popular. 

"the Volturi" fan art by Deviant Art user aryundomiel (10)

Another site that is used is Fandom, which differs slightly from Reddit. Here, fans can still create discussions, but are also able to include blog posts. Many of the blogs focus on why the fans joined the fandom and their love for the series. Fandom also includes featured videos such as cast interviews and bloopers from the movie franchise. There is also a section titled "Twilight News", where any and all news regarding the saga is included. For example, the latest news was actress Dakota Fanning's birthday- while nothing to do with the series, Fanning played Jane, a member of the Volturi, in the movie series. 

(3) Fan art by artist Butcher Billy.
Crossover between Twilight and Wandavision

The fandom has reached a new platform as well: TikTok. On this video sharing app, members of the fandom post content that one would see on Reddit, just in video form. Many users are fond of cosplaying as their favorite characters (8), going to the actual Cullen house used in the film (6), and even making edits where they place themselves into the movie (7)!

In a bid to discover more about the fans, I requested to join the Reddit group, and my request was accepted. While in the group, I was able to observe the fandom, at a much closer look. I discovered that the group also has a category for fanfic, which features a weekly spotlight, where the fanfic with the most upvotes is featured that week. I also took my hand at posting, and asked the fans why they love being apart of the fandom, and why the saga is important to them. My post garnered many responses, but the overall theme was the love between Bella and Edward, and that Twilight came to them when they needed it the most- it saved them in a sense. One response said, 

"I think Twilight made me fall in love with the idea of 

falling/being in love. I feel like through Twilight you can almost experience what falling in love is like. I read it when I was twelve and it was my first fandom and also the first time I was so invested in a romantic relationship in a book. Edward was also my first fictional crush and I felt that very deeply.

So I guess you could say that my first love is in fact Twilight itself.

It makes me believe in "true love" as far as that is possible. Edwards and Bella's love always felt like a fact, rock solid, while in other stories romantic relationships feel more brittle and insecure and the people in them more flexible to move on (which is healthy off course to an extend, but I like the certainty of Bella's and Edwards love for each other that will never fade). It makes me wish and hope that someday I will be loved by someone that much and intensely and that I will love them just as much and intensely in return. That I will 100% trust in our relationship and never doubt that they love me.

Every time I go back to Twilight it reminds me of these feelings and it sort of feels like I experience the happiness of being in love myself".

Another said, 

"I used to be one of those people who would shit on the series just because everyone else did and then one night I saw the movies on Hulu and decided why not since there was nothing else good watched the first one and thought hey this ain’t bad then kept watching them and kept getting more sucked in by the time I finished BD pt 2 and saw the last scene and then those special credits they did the emotional statue I am literally just melted I nearly cried for the first time in 8 years and it gave me the courage to ask out my crush which succeeded, unfortunately we split about 2 years ago but rewatching and reading the books just always fills me with just this strong emotion I can’t describe which is why I’ll be forever grateful to the movies and SM for creating this- I guess you could say this saga is my own personal brand of heroine".

More on Twilight

While in the Reddit group, it became apparent that the discussions and relationships between members were the most meaningful to the fandom. One user said, when asked why they love being apart of the fandom,

"Honestly I love being apart of this fandom because the rest of you!!! This is one of the most positive fandoms to be apart of. I am a huge Star Wars fan but the fandom is horrible! There is so much negativity that I don’t really go into the subreddits for it. But this subreddit is magical!!! I alway love coming here and seeing what’s posted and being talked about".

"Theorizing Twilight: Essays on What's at Stake
in a Post-Vampire World" Cover

There have even been scholarly pieces written in relation to Twilight. One, for example, is titled "Theorizing Twilight: Essays on What's at Stake in a Post-Vampire World" (5). There are a total of 15 essays in the book, which take a closer look at themes such as gender, sexuality, and race in the books and movies, while also examining the fandom and the effect Twilight has had on modern culture.

Another piece is "'Anyone who Calls Muse a Twilight Band will be Shot on Sight': Music, Distinction, and the “Interloping Fan” in the Twilight Franchise" (1). This article focuses on the fandom of Twilight and the fandom of the band Muse, and how the film brought the two together. 

Conclusion

Twilight means more to these fans than just a movie or book series. For many, it is what inspired them, and showed them what true love looks like. Through my time in the group, I was treated with such kindness, and all were welcoming- this is a lovely fandom. There are so many aspects on the fandom as well- from videos of Twilight ambience for studying/sleeping (included below) (2), discussions, cosplay, fan fiction, literally everything can be found in this fandom. 

Works Cited

1.) “Anyone who calls Muse a Twilight band will be shot ON Sight”: MUSIC, distinction, and the “Interloping Fan” in the twilight franchise. (2017). Fan Identities and Practices in Context, 49-64. doi:10.4324/9781315675442-10

2.) Bella swans Room Twilight Ambience ASMR - YouTube. (2019, December 20). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51hnSy0HWp4

3.) Labonte, R., & Rachel Labonte (1683 Articles Published) Rachel LaBonte is a news and features writer for Screen Rant with a deep passion for movies and television. A recent graduate of. (2021, February 22). WandaVision & Twilight CROSSOVER Art Imagines Robert Pattinson as vision. Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://screenrant.com/wandavision-twilight-crossover-fan-art-poster/

4.) R/twilight. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.reddit.com/r/twilight/

5.) Theorizing Twilight : Essays on What's at Stake in a Post-Vampire World, edited by Maggie Parke, and Natalie Wilson, McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers, 2011. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/bloomsburguniv-ebooks/detail.action?docID=773281.

6.) TikTok. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.tiktok.com/@505shars/video/6931062132649807110?lang=en

7.) TikTok. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.tiktok.com/@dovemalfoy/video/6932250717713468678?lang=en

8.) TikTok. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.tiktok.com/@maryalicebrandon/video/6902890462286335234?lang=en

9.) Twilight (Meyer novel). (2021, February 12). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight_(Meyer_novel)

10.) The Volturi by aryundomiel on DeviantArt. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2021, from https://www.deviantart.com/aryundomiel/art/the-Volturi-101054849