Robert Pattinson is a vampire. He may be a London-born model, actor and musician. He may have been named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World last year. But to most of the general public, he is a pale, brooding, blood-sucking denizen of the netherworld who is in love with one human girl and has millions of others swooning.
For most vampires, there is no hope of ever hanging up the fangs. It has something to do with fate and doom and whatnot. But in Pattinson’s case, there could be a light at the end of the “Twilight” tunnel.
Pattinson’s turns as Edward Cullen in the film adaptations of the Stephenie Meyer “Twilight” series of novels has made him wealthy (a reported $27.5 million in 2010 alone) and famous. Now comes the hard part: Establishing himself as a respected thespian beyond his signature role as the toothy blood-sipper. Next he stars opposite Reese Witherspoon in the Depression-era circus drama “Water for Elephants,” which opens March 22.
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Pattinson has established a virulent fan base around the world. Vanessa Corn is a part of it. She runs the site, “strictlyrobpattinson.com,” which focuses on the actor’s work beyond “Twilight” and Edward Cullen.
“I am a major fan of Rob’s,” said Corn, a wife and mom who lives in Chicago, works a day job as an administrator and has been operating the site for just over a year. “I definitely don’t think that ‘Twilight’ showed his acting strengths, but I am positive we haven’t seen his best.
“[T]’Water for Elephants seems very promising in that regard, especially after seeing reactions from critics who — up until now — have been more than happy to pan him and write him off as simply ‘that vampire guy.’ I think his best so far has been ‘Little Ashes,’ where he really turned himself into Salvador Dali and showed people the other side of him, the very private side.”
Anna Benefield is another ardent Rob follower. She is a wife and mom, too, who lives in Atlanta and owns her own business. She said she has seen all of Pattinson’s film, and also lists “Little Ashes” — the 2008 indie about Dali, filmmaker Luis Bunuel and writer Federico Garcia Lorca — as her favorite.
“Although I’m a fan of the Saga,” Benefield said of the “Twilight” series, “the movies are campy at best. They’re fun for what they are, but none of the actors show their best abilities. To be honest, after I saw ‘Twilight’ I wasn’t sure how much of a career Rob would have.
“He definitely has a pretty face and takes pretty pictures. But acting? Eh. Time would tell. I was happy when ‘Little Ashes’ showed in our local art house. I really enjoyed the story and I thought he did a fantastic job. That was kind of the moment I realized he could do so much more.”
“People are interested in him because he IS more than ‘Twilight,’” Corn explained. “He writes, he reads, he loves movies and music, he’s extremely witty and sarcastic – my favorite combination.
“He seems like a genuinely interesting person, and we want to see him succeed.”
