Nothing signifies the coming of fall like the opening guitar lick of The Blue Foundation’s “Eyes on Fire.”
As “Twilight,” the book by Stephenie Meyer, celebrates its 21st anniversary on October 5, and the film adaptation turns 18 on November 17, we’re taking a look at the new generation of stars the Twihards were introduced to in “Twilight” and its subsequent four sequels.
We ranked the 16 actors who portrayed the teens of Forks (and La Push) based on success, with factors including, but not limited to, quality and quantity of projects, social media followings, other business ventures outside entertainment, and general presence in pop culture today.
Here’s who we think are the most successful “Twilight” (former) teens.
16. Tyson Houseman
Houseman, who played one of Jacob’s friends and fellow werewolves Quil, only has one acting credit to his name outside of “Twilight,” a 2015 horror film called “Feed the Devil.”
In 2026, he directed a short film called “Endless Sunlight.”
According to his website, Houseman, 36, tours with his theater company and is an accomplished puppeteer. He has nearly 5,000 followers on Instagram and 24,200 on X.
15. Michael Welch
Welch, who played Bella’s third suitor — the only human one, Mike — is still acting frequently.
The 39-year-old had actually been a TV star before “Twilight,” with a leading role in “Joan of Arcadia.” Welch returned to the medium with episodes of “Grimm” and “Bones” before landing a leading role on SyFy series “Z Nation.”
After that ended in 2018, he appeared on episodes of “Scandal,” “Lucifer,” “Station 19,” the reboot of “Quantum Leap,” and others.
He has 40,600 followers on Instagram and 60,800 on X.
14. Alex Meraz
Meraz, 41, played a member of Jacob’s pack, Paul. After “Twilight,” he appeared in episodes of “The Glades” and “Single Ladies.” He then scored roles in “Suicide Squad” and “Bright” before landing a recurring role in “Animal Kingdom.”
He also wrote, directed, and starred in a film, “Bad Dad,” which was released in 2020.
Meraz appeared in four episodes of “The Walking Dead” in 2021 and 2022 as Carver. He also appeared alongside Machine Gun Kelly, Sam Worthington, and Heather Graham in “The Last Son.”
Most recently, he appeared in four episodes of “Landman” and four episodes of “Dark Winds” alongside his fellow pack member Kiowa Gordon.
He’s set to costar with Chris Hemsworth, Lily James, and Michael Peña in the coming thriller “Subversion.”
Meraz has 36,000 followers on Instagram.
13. Nikki Reed
Reed, who played Edward’s ice-queen sister Rosalie, was a child star due to her role in the controversial film “Thirteen.”
Since “Twilight” ended, Reed hasn’t acted that much. She’s appeared in multiple direct-to-video films like “Pawn,” “Empire State,” “In Your Eyes,” and “About Scout.” Reed also appeared in 18 episodes of “Sleepy Hollow” as Betsy Ross.
In 2019, she was in an episode of “Dollface” and five episodes of “V-Wars,” which starred her husband Ian Somerhalder. She hasn’t appeared on screen since.
Instead, Reed, 38, has been focusing on activism and her sustainable jewelry line, BaYou with Love, and her supplements brand, The Absorption Company.
Even though she’s stepped back from acting, she still has a sizable social media presence, with 3.8 million Instagram followers and 620,100 X followers.
12. Jackson Rathbone
Rathbone played Jasper, the newest member of the Cullen family and a former Confederate soldier. Like many of his on-screen siblings, Rathbone has stuck to indies, shorts, and VOD films. The 41-year-old starred in the box-office bomb “Samson,” which was produced and distributed by evangelical Christian company Pure Flix.
He also starred in the MTV series “Finding Carter.”
Rathbone’s big break as a leading man actually came during the “Twilight” run, when he was cast as Sokka in “The Last Airbender,” a notorious flop. The movie was released the same year as “Eclipse,” and it effectively took him out of mainstream box office contention.
Rathbone has 1.1 million followers on Instagram and 328,600 followers on X.
11. Ashley Greene
Greene, who played the delightfully kooky Alice Cullen, starred in the one-season wonder “Pan Am” the same year that “Breaking Dawn Part 2” was released.
Since then, Greene has appeared in indie films like “CBGB” and “Wish I Was Here,” as well as VOD-only films like “Staten Island Summer” and “Urge.” She also had a small role in “Bombshell” as TV journalist Abby Huntsman.
She starred in the Netflix horror film “Aftermath” in August 2021, and in 2022, she costarred with Bruce Willis in “Wrong Place.” In 2025, she appeared in two VOD horror films: “The Ritual” and “It Feeds.”
On the TV front, Greene, 39, appeared in 17 episodes of DirecTV’s “Rogue” and YouTube’s “Step Up: High Water,” which was canceled and then picked up by Starz, as well as an episode of “Wonder Man” as herself.
Greene has 1.9 million followers on Instagram and 1.4 million on X.
10. Kellan Lutz
Lutz, 41, appeared in all five films as the boisterous Emmett Cullen, Edward’s brother. Once the films ended, Lutz was poised to become one of Hollywood’s next leading men, but due to some questionable career choices, he’s been relegated to TV.
What was meant to be his big break, 2014’s “The Legend of Hercules,” ended up being a huge box-office bomb. After that, Lutz had a small role in “The Expendables 3” and roles in VOD films like “Money” and “Extraction.”
In 2019, he appeared on two episodes of “FBI” to set up the new spin-off, “FBI: Most Wanted,” in which he starred for the first three seasons. He left the show in September 2021 to move back to California with his family.
Lutz has 1.1 million followers on Instagram and 737,200 on X.
9. Mackenzie Foy
While Foy, 25, only appeared in two films as Renesmee Cullen (the “Breaking Dawns”), her character made quite the impression. She was even nominated for a Young Artist Award.
Since then, Foy has appeared in “The Conjuring” (a mega-hit), “Interstellar” (mega-hit), and “The Little Prince” (the most successful French animated film abroad of all time). She got her first chance at a real leading role with “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” which ended up as a box-office bomb, but it had a budget of over $100 million, which is still a huge opportunity.
Foy also starred in Disney+’s “Black Beauty” in 2020 alongside Kate Winslet, and she has 1.7 million followers on Instagram and 55,600 on X (although she hasn’t tweeted since 2018).
In 2026, she costarred with Sean Bean and Joe Pantoliano in “The Isolate Thief.”
8. Justin Chon
Chon, who is probably still best known for his role as Eric in “The Twilight Saga” — one of Bella’s high school friends — has been steadily working since the series ended. He has directed four films, and his 2021 film, “Blue Bayou,” received some Oscar buzz. He also co-starred in the film with Alicia Vikander.
Chon has also directed episodes of “Pachinko” and “Chief of War.”
On the acting front, he appeared in an episode of “New Girl,” and multiple episodes of “Sin City Saints,” “Dr. Ken,” and “Deception.” He also had a successful YouTube career, with more than 199,000 subscribers (though the channel seems to be inactive now), and is part of the parody K-pop group Boys Generally Asian.
Chon, 45, also has 160,000 followers on Instagram.
7. Kiowa Gordon
Gordon, who played one of Jacob’s werewolf friends, Embry, had a recurring role on the CW series “Roswell, New Mexico” as Flint Manes, the older brother of one of the main characters, from 2019 to 2020.
In 2022, he began costarring with Zahn McClarnon on “Dark Winds,” an AMC series based on the “Leaphorn and Chee” book series, as Jim Chee. It currently has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and was renewed for a fifth season coming in 2027.
The 36-year-old has also appeared in other projects like “The Red Road” and “The Liberator,” and he has 52,900 followers on Instagram and 63,400 on X.
6. Christian Serratos
Serratos, who played Bella’s sweetly shy friend Angela, starred in “The Walking Dead” as Rosita Espinosa. She appeared in 129 episodes over its 11 seasons until the show’s end in 2022.
But what should’ve been her big break came in 2020 when she was cast as famed Tejano icon Selena, who was murdered in 1995.
Serratos, 36, played the singer in Netflix’s “Selena: The Series,” which covered her rise to fame and eventual untimely death. The first part was released in December 2020, and the second part dropped in May 2021. Though the critical reception was tepid, Netflix announced it was watched by 25 million households in the first 28 days after its debut.
However, she hasn’t had that much of a bump from the show. She’s only been in an episode of “Love, Death & Robots” in 2022 since “Selena.”
She currently has 2.5 million followers on Instagram.
5. Booboo Stewart
Stewart, who played Seth Clearwater starting with “Eclipse,” has kept very busy since the end of the film series. He joined the “X-Men” universe in 2014’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past” as Warpath, starred in the first three “Descendants” movies as Jay, the son of Jafar, popped up in “Westworld,” and co-starred in 2020’s “Let Him Go” with Kevin Costner and Diane Lane.
He also recurred on the dearly departed Netflix series “Julie and the Phantoms,” and recurred in season four of “Good Trouble” in 2022. The 32-year-old also starred in the Prime Video musical series “Paradise City,” a continuation of the characters from the film “American Satan.”
Up next is a road trip comedy called “Pipe Cleaner Boy.”
He’s also part of the band tbh.
Stewart has 2.2 million followers on Instagram.
4. Taylor Lautner
Pre-“Twilight,” Lautner was already very famous to a certain age group — those who had grown up with “Shark Boy and Lava Girl.” Lautner was cast in “Twilight” as Jacob Black, but he was very close to being recast for “New Moon” and subsequent films due to the physical transformation Jacob went through. Instead, Lautner put on pounds of muscle and remained in the cast.
After “Breaking Dawn Part 2,” Lautner’s career slowed down. He’s only appeared in five films since the series ended: “Grown Ups 2” in an uncredited role, “Tracers,” “The Ridiculous Six,” “Run the Tide,” and “Home Team” in 2022. But he had a recurring starring role in BBC One’s “Cuckoo” from 2014 to 2018, and he appeared in “Scream Queens” in 2016.
At some point, he’ll appear in the film “The Token Groomsman” with Sarah Hyland and Andie MacDowell.
Of course, Lautner’s association with his ex, Taylor Swift, has helped his ranking. In 2023, he appeared in the music video for “I Can See You,” a song from “Speak Now: Taylor’s Version,” which was originally written around the time the two were dating. He also popped up on the Eras Tour.
Currently, he cohosts a podcast called “The Squeeze” with his wife, Taylor “Tay” Lautner — yes, his wife is also named Taylor.
Nostalgia clearly helps Lautner, 34, on social media — he has 11.2 million followers on Instagram.
3. Anna Kendrick
The same year Kendrick, 41, appeared in “New Moon,” she also co-starred in “Up in the Air” alongside George Clooney and was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress.
The next year, at the same time as “Eclipse,” she appeared in “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.” Essentially, she was already reaching levels of stardom that others in the cast would aspire to — and she was playing the minor role of Jessica, one of Bella’s friends in “Twilight.”
The year after “Breaking Dawn Part 2,” Kendrick starred in “Pitch Perfect,” which would spawn two sequels, earn over $100 million at the box office, and earn her a top 10 hit on the Hot 100 with “Cups.”
Besides “Pitch Perfect,” Kendrick has also starred in musicals like “Into the Woods” and “The Last Five Years,” was nominated for an Emmy for her work in “Dummy,” starred in one of HBO Max’s first original series (“Love Life“), joined another franchise with “Trolls,” and wrote a memoir.
Other popular films she’s been in include “A Simple Favor” and its 2025 sequel, “Another Simple Favor,” as well as “Noelle” and “Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates,” among others. She also made her directorial debut in 2023 with “Woman of the Hour.”
But she hasn’t had a really huge hit since 2018.
She also has 24 million followers on Instagram and 5.7 million on X.
2. Kristen Stewart
Stewart is almost unrecognizable from her days as leading damsel in distress Bella Swan — though, of course, she was already a bit famous as a child star from roles in “Panic Room” and “Catch That Kid.”
After the end of “Twilight,” and the critical flop that was “Snow White and the Huntsman,” Stewart focused on prestige projects like “Clouds of Sils Maria,” “Still Alice,” and “Personal Shopper.”
In 2019, she began exploring mainstream films again, appearing in “Charlie’s Angels.” The next year, she starred in the sci-fi horror film “Underwater” and the first major LGBTQ+ holiday rom-com “Happiest Season.”
In 2021, she took on her most challenging role to date — Princess Diana in the semi-fictional biopic “Spencer” — which earned her rave reviews and an Academy Award nomination.
In 2022, she had a scene-stealing role in David Cronenberg’s “Crimes of the Future.”
Since then, the 36-year-old starred in the surely-soon-to-be cult classic “Love Lies Bleeding” and starred and produced in the film “The Wrong Girls,” which was directed by her wife, Dylan Meyer.
Up next is a return to her roots: vampires. She’s set to costar with Wagner Moura in the vampire gothic thriller “Flesh of the Gods.”
No doubt to the disappointment of her fans, she doesn’t have any social media accounts.
1. Robert Pattinson
Pattinson already had a small reputation from his role in “Harry Potter,” but when he was cast as Edward Cullen, he almost immediately became an A-lister.
After concluding the last “Twilight” film, Pattinson focused on working with talented directors, like the Safdie brothers (“Good Time”), Werner Herzog (“Queen of the Desert”), Claire Denis (“High Life”), Robert Eggers (“The Lighthouse”), and Christopher Nolan (“Tenet“) — the latter was also his reintroduction into blockbuster films. Of course, that return was cemented by his casting as Bruce Wayne, aka Batman, in “The Batman,” which made over $700 million. A highly anticipated sequel is in production.
Pattinson, who also does not have an Instagram account, has continued to prove in 2026 that he’s capable of holding the screen as an action star.
The 40-year-old has appeared in three huge films this year: “The Drama,” which he and Zendaya dragged over the $100+ million threshold; “The Odyssey,” one of the biggest movies of the year in which he played a scene-stealing meme machine; and “Primetime,” in which he reimagines “To Catch a Predator” host Chris Hansen as a malevolent entity reflecting our culture’s worst impulses.
And that’s not even including “Dune: Part Three,” which comes out in December.
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