In the 2008 movie adaptation of the vampire novel “Twilight,” Taylor Lautner gained notoriety as the werewolf Jacob Black, one of the three participants in the supernatural love triangle. When the last “Twilight” movie came out in 2012, it appeared that Lautner would go on to have even greater success. It seemed obvious that Lautner would be able to go on from this part to portraying more mature roles after bringing Jacob to life on television.
However, Lautner’s initial promise as an actor appears to have diminished. Fans of “Twilight” have questioned why Lautner hasn’t seen the same level of success on the big screen as his co-stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson during the past few years. Although he has been working hard to carve out his own path and select parts that are actually important to him, Lautner hasn’t given up on Hollywood. Here are several reasons why Lautner’s film career suffered after “Twilight” and why he could soon make a big comeback.
Abduction received poor reviews
Taylor Lautner wanted to be the star of a big-budget movie in 2011 that would provide him more opportunities following “Twilight.” He played Nathan Harper in the action movie “Abduction,” who was surreptitiously handed away to adoptive parents as his birth parents looked into CIA corruption. In the movie, he’s still a teenager and is determined to get the truth about what really happened to his family. Unfortunately, “Abduction” did not have a successful premiere and did not usher in Lautner’s career’s exciting new era.
In a review for the Salt Lake Tribune, critic Rene Rodriguez said, “‘Abduction’ is a crude and lowbrow attempt to cash in on a young actor’s heat — an exploitation picture where the person being taken advantage of is too young to recognise.” Other reviewers agreed that the movie was essentially an effort to cash in on Lautner’s reputation before the “Twilight” buzz subsided. Stephen Holden, for example, referred to “Abduction” as a “sloppy, exploitative act of star worship constructed… around Lautner.”
Did he ask for too much money?
One of the most expensive teen stars in Hollywood in 2010 was Taylor Lautner. Granted, the success of “Twilight” almost ensured that he would want a big salary in order to go on to subsequent films. But despite the fact that Lautner had never opened a movie before, he was demanding a relatively high compensation in comparison to other stars. His deal for the movie “Stretch Armstrong” reportedly included a salary of $7.5 million. This was probably more money than Robert Pattinson was making at the time from his leading parts in movies like “Remember Me.”
While “Twilight” was a cultural phenomenon that couldn’t be avoided, Lautner could have believed he could command that kind of price. But as he underwhelmed at the box office, producers began to doubt that the high price tag was justified. There was no denying that he had tremendous promise, but potential alone would not have qualified him for that kind of money.
Fame made him ‘super anxious’
Before “Twilight” reached theatres in 2008, Taylor Lautner had approximately a dozen film and television roles under his belt, but playing impassioned Pacific Northwest werewolf teen Jacob Black catapulted him to almost instant fame. However, such fame can come at a cost, including a loss of privacy and other drawbacks that are difficult for any newly established celebrity to deal with, much less someone like Lautner who was a little boy when the first “Twilight” movie came out. For Lautner, fame wasn’t all pleasant, and the bitterness of it impacted his life for years.
The Hollywood Reporter quotes Lautner as saying, “When I was 16, 17, 18, getting up and wanting to just go out for a stroll or go on a date and I had 12 cars waiting outside my house to follow me wherever I’m going or show up to an airport or anywhere, and you had thousands of people shouting.” He continued by saying that for more than ten years, he avoided going to malls, supermarkets, and movie theatres because he didn’t want to draw attention to himself. Lautner said, “I went for so many years either not leaving my house, or if I did, it was with hat, sunglasses, and just like, fear. “I would become quite apprehensive before leaving the house. I simply didn’t.”
He preferred living outside of Hollywood
A little bit of a homebody, Taylor Lautner. Instead of purchasing a home of his own while he was working on the “Twilight” movies, he remained to reside at home with his family outside of Los Angeles. In an interview with GQ, Lautner was asked about leaving his family’s house, to which he responded, “There isn’t much of a point. I’m always busy. I haven’t given it much thought.” He went on, “I adore the fact that nothing in my home life has changed. I continue to assist with the trash. I continue to assist with the lawn.” He liked performing, but he also enjoyed his life at home. Despite the fact that his career was flourishing, he didn’t want to go into the heart of Hollywood and leave his family behind.
Lautner eventually made the choice to embrace his independence and go it alone. A larger mansion in Agoura Hills, where he discovered many acres of land and plenty of solitude, was what he most recently bought.
He may have a future in TV
Taylor Lautner may have a promising future in TV even though his film career has slowed down after “Twilight.” He joined the “Scream Queens” cast in 2016 as Dr. Cassidy Cascade, a zombie who chose to pursue medicine because he couldn’t comprehend what he had turned into. Additionally, he played an unexpected part in the British comedy “Cuckoo” in 2014.
Lautner played Dale, a young, naive American who is looking for his father, the movie’s titular character, in “Cuckoo.” In an effort to make some type of connection, Dale crashes with his wife’s family even though Cuckoo, a carefree hippie, had vanished in a climbing accident. In the part, Lautner demonstrated his surprise comic acting prowess. “Because Dale is being performed by the representative of Team Jacob, he is not funny. Because Lautner rules the series, Dale is humorous “Decider received a review from Kayla Cobb. Dale is a naïve American who recently left a perplexing cult. His funniest moments are a result of his odd mix of unwavering optimism and ignorance. Lautner has maintained contact with Greg Davies, his “Cuckoo” co-star, who raved about the experience of working with Lautner. Perhaps this role has opened some doors for Lautner. The best work from Taylor Lautner might yet be to come.
He wanted to be pickier about his roles
Taylor Lautner talked on how the “Run the Tide” experience had inspired him to be more selective about his future roles. This was after all a blatant attempt to shed his “Twilight” persona and remake himself as a different kind of performer. In an interview with “Good Morning America,” he said, “I want to choose things that are distinctive.”
But it appears that Lautner’s options were rather constrained for a while. He wasn’t going to be presented with the kinds of opportunities that would enable him to change the course of his career if producers weren’t convinced that his films would perform well at the box office or receive positive reviews from critics. He wanted to be selective, but he wasn’t receiving the same kinds of offers that he had in the years following “Twilight” made him famous. He didn’t want to take on parts that felt monotonous, but he didn’t have the same type of pull he formerly did. This put him in a difficult situation.
He was defined by Twilight
Before being cast as Jacob in “Twilight,” Taylor Lautner had been working in Hollywood for a while, but there’s no denying that it was this part that made him famous. He hasn’t really gone past the “Twilight” franchise’s final film, for better or worse, even though it was released in 2012.
By 2015, Lautner has been openly having trouble deciding on his next step in the business. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, an agent said, “It’s not simple to break out of the shadow of a smash like ‘Twilight’.” “He’s still quite young, though. Taylor still has time to develop into more than merely Jacob.” Since then, he has taken on a few films and television roles, but he hasn’t exactly signed on for any endeavours that have garnered him as much attention as “Twilight.” Today, Lautner continues to be most recognised for his portrayal of Jacob Black, which has shaped his career for more than ten years.
He wasn’t in We Can Be Heroes
Lautner and Taylor Dooley co-starred as Sharkboy in the heroic adventure movie “The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D” in 2005. The movie centres on Max, a lonely young kid who creates a dream world to escape, only for this world to actually materialise. When they are in need of Max’s assistance in saving their planet, Sharkboy and Lavagirl show up at his school. The spinoff movie “We Can Be Heroes,” directed by Robert Rodriguez, included Dooley, but Lautner was strangely missing. Rodriguez claimed that as a filmmaker, he couldn’t bear the thought of asking Lautner to devote time to such a little part.
“He didn’t have a significant enough part to play. The focus wasn’t on those characters. After “Twilight,” he rose to such fame that he would have expectations “According to Rodriguez, who spoke with Decider. “How would they react if they discovered he was in it and thought, “Wait! His face has been hidden the entire time! Hey, there was no dialogue from him! I wouldn’t want it to appear as if he had a demerit against him.”
He wasn’t known for his acting talents
Taylor Lautner gained not only acclaim for his acting prowess but also for his physique after making an appearance in the “Twilight” movies. Lautner adhered to a strict diet and training regimen to get in shape for the role of Jacob, and his efforts unquestionably paid off. Lautner came in first place on the “Access Hollywood” list of the “Top 5 Hollywood Abs” in 2010. However, he felt disappointed when he observed that going forward, every director seemed to prioritise his physical attributes over developing his talent.
In the movie “Valentine’s Day,” Lautner played a little part, and he objected to a scene that was designed especially for him to display his abs. Lautner stated in a GQ interview that “originally I was intended to take off my top.” “According to the script, Willy took off his shirt as we were making our way to school. “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I exclaimed. The break. Will he remove his shirt in the middle of class? Not at all. I removed my shirt for “New Moon” because that is how it is described in the book. And there are explanations for it.” It was difficult for Lautner to move past his reputation as a handsome face because he wanted to be regarded as more.
He’s in a committed relationship
Taylor Lautner has been linked to a number of ladies in Hollywood, including Taylor Swift, Olivia Holt, and most recently, Billie Lourd, his “Scream Queens” co-star. However, Lautner and his non-celebrity partner Taylor Dome have been happily married since 2018. Following Lautner’s 2018 Instagram post of the couple dressed as Halloween characters, the two have been sharing cute pictures ever since.
Dome is a nurse who probably got to know Lautner through his younger sister, and she doesn’t live a glamorous life. Lautner may have become more interested in life outside of Hollywood as a result of spending more time with his partner. Dating someone who doesn’t work in the entertainment industry could be a relief after being in a number of relationships that were continuously under the spotlight of the media. The couple has been together for a long time and appears to be content. According to “Access Hollywood,” the male Taylor proposed to the female Taylor in November 2021. Domed concurred.
He’s not quite done with movies just yet
Taylor Lautner hadn’t acted in a movie or television series since the production of the British comedy “Cuckoo” concluded in 2018 and the critically panned “Run the Tide” in 2016. That protracted absence came to an end in January 2022 with the release of “Home Team,” a well-known Netflix original movie made by Adam Sandler’s company Happy Madison and starring Kevin James and Rob Schneider in addition to the comedian. Based on a true story, the comedy follows Sean Payton, the coach of the New Orleans Saints, as he manages his son’s middle school football team in a small Texas town while he is on suspension from the NFL for encouraging his players to hurt opponents. Lautner plays Troy Lambert, a fictionalised version of Brennan Hardy, another football coach at the Texas middle school, and is billed after James as Peyton.
In just a few days after its debut, “Home Team” ranked first on Netflix’s most-watched list (according to HuffPost), indicating that there is still a sizable following for Taylor Lautner movies and that a comeback for the actor may be imminent.
His films have been panned by critics
Even if Taylor Lautner’s career took a hit with “Abduction,” he could always bounce back with stronger movies. This return, though, has never actually happened. While the parkour sequences in this action movie were clearly enjoyable, he still fell short of impressing critics who thought he hadn’t broken rid of his image in the 2015 movie “Tracers.” Stephen Witty stated in a review for the New York Daily News, “Hollywood’s hunkiest, lunkiest werewolf is still trapped making movies where his major stage direction is ‘He slowly strips off his T-shirt.'”
His attempt at comedy with a part in “The Ridiculous 6” also failed. The Adam Sandler movie received a pitiful 0% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics. “It’s a clumsy pastiche of westerns and western parodies, full of sloppily racist humour that can’t be easily dismissed with an irony card waft. Woeful, “Brad Newsome made a comment in a Sydney Morning Herald review.
His passion project flopped
Indie movie “Run the Tide” starring Taylor Lautner in 2016. Reymund, the character he played, looks after his younger brother Oliver while their mother is in jail. In an effort to shield Oliver from her abuse, he flees with his brother to the California coast after she is freed. He described the film as a “passion project for everyone involved,” and it was obvious that he was excited to play a part that was totally different from anything he had ever done before. He even said that he wished to combat his “heartthrob status.” Unfortunately, he still hadn’t been able to win over the detractors.
In a review of “Run the Tide” for Movie Nation, Roger Moore stated that “Lautner trots out another sensitive character that he can’t really do justice to.” He is a flat actor who struggles to give his characters life or to make us forget how hard he has to work to be thus “convincing” in a role.
Several of his films were shelved
The movies Taylor Lautner starred in in the years after “Twilight” weren’t commercial successes, but at least they were released in theatres; several other Lautner movies never even got created. He was set to star in the action movie “Northern Lights,” for example, but he opted to back out after being offered a significant role in “Stretch Armstrong.” He had thought that this decision would work out well, but “Stretch Armstrong” was ultimately cancelled, and the project was abandoned. Additionally, he agreed to star in a movie based on the biblical tale of David and Goliath, but that project too fizzled out and was never released.
Every actor experiences a few movies that don’t work out, but for Lautner at this stage in his career, those failures were especially hurtful. After all, he was only starting to establish a reputation for himself outside of the “Twilight” series. It was challenging to make up for missed opportunities as his shooting schedule began to fall apart or to stop his rapidly losing momentum.
