Shooting hasn’t even begun on the third Twilight Saga flick (Eclipse), but drama is already plaguing the film. Just days after the cast got cozy in front of fans at Comic-Con, Summit Entertainment has dropping actress Rachelle LeFevre (pictured, left) and replaced her with Bryce Dallas Howard (right). LeFevre, who portrayed the vampire Victoria in the first two flicks, is a fan favorite, and is known for her friendly demeanor and her breast cancer fund-raising on Twitter. In a statement released last night, she said she was “stunned” and “saddened” by Summit’s decision, adding, ” I am hurt deeply by Summit’s surprising decision to move on without me.”
Summit responded by accusing LeFevre, who had also accepted a part in the movie Barney’s Version, of creating unresolvable scheduling conflicts. “Ms. Lefevre took a role in the other film that places her in Europe during the required rehearsal time, and at least 10 days of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse’s principal photography. This period is essential for both rehearsal time with the cast, and for filming at key locations that are only available during the initial part of production,” Summit said in a statement. “The fact remains that Ms. Lefevre’s commitment to the other project—which she chose to withhold from Summit until the last possible moment—makes her unfortunately unavailable to perform the role of Victoria in [Eclipse].”
Fans of the uber-popular series are freaking out across the web, and an online petition has been started in support of LeFevre reclaiming the role. But E! Online reports that Summit insiders – who allegedly wanted to drop LeFevre due to her gigantic salary for Eclipse – don’t care what the Twi-hards have to say. When asked if their protest would have any effect on their decision, one Summit source replied, “I don’t think so.” Ouch. Hurts almost as much as a vampire bite. [Photos: GettyImages]
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3 Responses to “Twilight Fans Freak After Rachelle LeFevre Dropped From Eclipse”
Those pictures are shocking… I really thought it was the same girl.
I don’t think I am as syked to watch Eclipse as I was before,I hate recast and for some dame reason that Director felt Rachelle didn’t work as Victoria but a woman who couldn’t play blind in the movie The Village was perfect for the role,its official they should have kept the Director of the first Twilight but now its ruined,New Moon wasn’t as good as they claimed it was because of the director now the director for Eclipse will be ruining it,especially since he did something that was not necessary,he recast,which is the biggest mistake any director can make,I mean recast if someone died,but no he was very unprofessional,he didn’t ask her what her plans were, it was obvious she plan to return for Eclipse but no he decided to replace Rachelle without her even realizing it, before it was too late,what the hell kind of director does that,I bet he didn’t even have that Bryce Howard audition,he just told her to come on set.You are suppose to speak to someone before you have someone else take there place and not just that give them a reason,and a good reason at that because they fired her supposibly because she agreed on another film but she never told then she was quiting,she already planned it out,he just didn’t like her and came up with that fake excuse to have daddy’s girl take the role.Bryce is not a good actress at all,like as I wrote before, she couldn’t play a blind woman let alone a bad *)#(()$~)_(_*!@ vampire.Sorry but she isn’t Victoria,she look like she worked too hard to look like Victoria,and she still doesn’t look like her,Rachelle worked out,Bryce looks too thin.
I think it’s a classic case of the Big Corporation VS the Little Expendable Employee.
But in the case of a major movie franchise, re-casting an actress at this late stage under obviously DUBIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES is saddening.
However, Summit’s over-confidence WILL be their downfall. They just proved to the fans that all they care about is making money…and, uh, exactly WHOSE POCKETS are they tapping?