THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2

Bella and Edward's Families
Billy Burke once again appears as Bella's father and Forks Chief of Police, Charlie Swan. The Cullen Coven - made up of Edward, as well as Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Kellan Lutz as Emmett, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, Jackson Rathbone as Jasper, and Ashley Greene as Alice - are all reprising their roles. Giving a further glimpse into Jasper's colorful past, noted actor Wendell Pierce appears as human J. Jenks.

The time has finally come that Charlie must know that magical creatures exist, without knowing the full truth about his daughter and her in-laws. "Jacob can't tell Charlie that they're vampires, but what he can do is show Charlie what he is," explains Godfrey. "There's quite a funny scene where Charlie's out chopping wood and Jacob transforms into a wolf in front of him. The message is, the world's not what you think it is and you need to see your daughter."

Lautner adds, "Jacob finds out that everybody, including Bella, is going to have to leave Forks to maintain secrecy and safety, so Jacob has to do something. He charges straight to the Swan house to show Charlie something that he's never seen before. All of sudden Jacob transforms into a giant werewolf and this is the first time Charlie learns anything about any of this supernatural stuff that's been going on."

"All the creatures that do know what's going on find it necessary, not only to protect what they have going on, but to protect Charlie himself, to let him in on part of the secret," says Billy Burke. "He's told for the common good and he has no choice but to believe that," says Burke.

"Charlie is told that Bella and Edward have adopted a child and when introduced, he recognizes immediately that there's something not only unique and perhaps weird about her, but he also recognizes that she has a lot of similarities to his daughter," says Burke. "He pieces it together very quickly that that kid might have some of his own blood."

Stewart explains, "Charlie knows there's something more than a little off about Jacob, and the fact that my adopted daughter looks just like me, all of those things are easy for him to stomach if he just pretends, as long as everyone's happy, then I'm just not going to ask questions."

She appreciated the experience of working on several films with Burke. "It's fun doing something for so long because you form special dynamics with actors on one movie that carry over and you look forward to having scenes with them in the next. Looking back, those were some of the best scenes," comments Stewart. "Billy and I get to do it again and again, and because the scenes are so sparse in the series, both to play them and to watch them, when they come up it feels very much like home."

Burke adds, "This has been a wonderful gig for me for four years. I always enjoy coming back and I dig playing this guy. Charlie Swan and myself don't share a lot of real similarities, but I like him. He makes me laugh. I like playing this guy and I've had a great run. If there were more books, I would be coming back to play Charlie again, having a good time and getting to be in what is now, really a part of Hollywood history."

A handful of these comic scenes balance the mortal peril that soon takes over the plot, several involving the returning Cullen cast. "When Charlie's on his way over to see Bella for the first time as a vampire, she quickly has to get herself together enough to be presentable. In the book, the other Cullen's give her some instruction about sitting and talking, but Bill really wanted to take that further. He wanted to have the Cullens really school her and do these fast lessons, with her just not getting it," says Rosenberg.

"We were teaching Bella how to be a vampire, but act like a human," Peter Facinelli adds. "The Cullen family teaching her how to be human is so awkward because the Cullens don't really do a great job at appearing human themselves. They're always trying to fit in and they don't quite fit in. They think they're experts at it, so it was really funny. We had a good time in that scene."

"When the Cullen family arrived on set it was like a reunion," says Condon. "Suddenly this group of actors who had started together were back together and it was fun to watch this family dynamic take over. They've all got interesting pasts and connections, and it became more of this big group effort."

"I've enjoyed a lot of different beats in this script and I was really looking forward to doing the arm wrestling scene with Kristen," comments Kellan Lutz. "It's one of the big moments for my character, and the fans are really looking forward to it. It was fun to shoot."

"In some ways, it's a relief for us that Bella is now a vampire as well," says Elizabeth Reaser. "Bella is fierce; she could really kill any of us. She's a newborn, which makes her dangerous and stronger than all of us, and a little... reckless, but it's great that she's one of us. It's fun to see her be powerful, and strong, and fast."

"Newborns are something that Jasper's dealt with a lot, as we've seen in Eclipse," says Jackson Rathbone. "Bella has far exceeded any expectation that Jasper or Alice have ever had as to how she would adapt, her powers, and her strength. Jasper knows what an incredible ally she is to the Cullen's."

"Bella's transformation into a newborn vampire is very easy for her, and that puts off Jasper a little bit," admits Rathbone. "He's so surprised, but he's also proud of her. Also, he finally can be around her without wanting to kill her. She shows up Emmett and shows how strong she is, and she's got these new powers that she's starting to realize, which will come in very handy towards the end of the film."

The baby especially captivates Rosalie. "She's in mom mode, taking care of this baby and fighting for her family," says Nikki Reed. "In the book, some of the best moments are between Rosalie and Renesmee. This is the dream come true for Rosalie. It's so nice to see how close Rosalie and Renesmee are because it's what she's always wanted. The whole family is so supportive of their relationship and also really thankful that Rose is capable and ready to be a mom. She's prepared. This is where the family comes in and everyone steps up and contributes while Bella's in the throes of transformation."

"My biggest fear with Rosalie from day one was always that she would come off as being very one dimensional. Yes, she's misunderstood, but in the book she's less misunderstood because there's more about why she's behaving in the way she is," says Reed. "In Part 2, she and Bella really have that triumph together of having made it through the drama in Part 1. Obviously everyone's completely in love with Renesmee, but Rosalie, she was Bella's staunchest ally during her pregnancy and brought her through. Bella and Rosalie have that have that connection throughout Part 2."

A problem is brought about when Renesmee is mistaken for an immortal child. "A cardinal rule in the vampire world is you don't create vampire children; you just don't. It's punishable by death," explains Facinelli. "They wreak havoc and when the Volturi find out, there are no questions asked. They take care of the problem and everybody around it. We find out that the Volturi know about Renesmee, and there is no explaining to them, 'But wait a minute. She's only half-vampire, she's also half-human.' They wouldn't listen to that."

The Cullens prepare for the Volturi's arrival by spreading out around the globe in search of support. "We start collecting witnesses," explains Facinelli. "We hope to try to slow the Volturi down enough so we can try to explain that we didn't go out and create a vampire child; we need to explain that she was born. Carlisle has been around for 350 years, so he's known a lot of people who he visits and asks them to stand witness, which is basically asking them to put their lives on the line."

Reed adds, "We find friends or other extended family members, people that we've met throughout the years, to come and meet Renesmee so they understand what she is and then act as somewhat of a buffer. Before the Volturi can actually approach, maybe they can hear from a few people that she's not an immortal child."

The family is once again tipped off to the Volturi's intentions by Alice's gift of seeing possible futures - she envisions them engaging the Cullens when the snow sticks to the ground. She and Jasper mysteriously leave town suddenly.

"Alice is forced to keep her family in the dark. She has a vision of the Volturi coming to attack her family and she realizes that if she even thinks anything, Edward is going to be able to read her mind," says Ashley Greene. "To keep her family safe, she takes Jasper and they go in search of some people that are going to help convince the Volturi not to destroy their family. Alice leaves a clue that only Bella can find and she finally returns in the latter half of the film and has a big part in saving the day."

Not willing to concede to total defeat just yet, Alice leaves behind a clue that only Bella can find... a clue that leads Bella to J. Jenks. When she meets him, Bella learns that Jasper has been using him for years for high quality fake travel documents - passports, driver's licenses, and birth certificates. Alice has led Bella to an insurance policy for Renesmee's safety... a way to escape the Volturi if things go badly.

Condon was thrilled to have such an acclaimed actor want to do a small but important role who only appears in one scene. "I was so excited to hear that Wendell Pierce was interested. HBO was shooting 'Treme' down in New Orleans at the same time and I'm a huge fan of his. It's the longest scene in the movie and it really is a two-hander between the Kristen and Wendell. There's so much going on beneath the surface while they're each probing the other. There's real mystery there. It was a gift to have a great actor. Kristen really felt that. Rob was really jealous that Kristen got to work with Wendell because he kind of idolizes him."

Alice proves Aro's reason for attacking invalid. "Nahuel - a half-human/half-vampire adult - basically proves that these hybrids can exist without destroying our secret," explains Greene. "But Aro doesn't really care so much about the so-called immortal child, he really just wants me, my brother, and in the end, Bella, for our gifts. He wants us to join the Volturi. Using her gift, Alice has to show him what's going to happen in the future if he's doesn't change his course: Bella's going to defeat him. Ultimately, he decides not to attack. Alice does leave for a good bit of the film, but towards the end, she certainly redeems herself."

Because of Alice's vision, the audience gets to experience the thrill of the two opposing vampire forces in unrestrained war. "You finally get to see that huge battle between the Volturi and the Cullens that always seems to almost happen, but never quite does," laughs Greene. "You really get to see a lot of courage with everyone really having to come together and trust each other to protect what we care about."

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