Kellan Lutz opens up about feeling 'stressed and desperate' after Twilight ended

Here we are, well over a decade on from Twilight dominating every multiplex (and the entire internet), and it turns out the glittery aftermath wasn’t all parties and pay cheques for at least one Cullen. Kellan Lutz, who you’ll recall from his stint as the brawny, dimpled Emmett, has properly opened up about just how fraught things got for him once the franchise called it quits back in 2012.

What Happens After Vampires?

Lutz popped up on the podcast Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum, where he gave a pretty revealing account of how post-Twilight life wasn’t the smooth ride you might expect of an actor whose face was everywhere from billboards to lunchboxes. He describes how the job offers weren’t just rolling in—there was outright pressure echoing down every audition room corridor. To keep the momentum, he was slogging through auditions for major stuff—he goes as far as namechecking Captain America and Thor. You’d think it’d be a shot in the arm, but it sounds like it was more a grindstone than a golden ticket.

Here’s the bit that lays bare just how much of a toll it took. On the podcast, Lutz told Rosenbaum:

‘I was, you know, going out for Captain America and Thor and the pressure was really, really on. I was like, I need to be so regulant and strict and do this and do that. And then I’d get so bummed on myself.’

He even confessed to copying Jason Statham’s famously gravelly, tough-guy voice to add some heft to his auditions—only to feel, at the end of it, that he wasn’t being himself anymore. Losing yourself in an effort to keep up your own momentum: it’s not exactly sparkling immortality.

Starring as Emmett Cullen made Kellan Lutz a household name from 2008 to 2012.

Bothered by the Spotlight

It’s not just the career angst Lutz had to deal with—turns out being part of a global phenomenon wasn’t as glamorous as you’d think. While staying by the beach (not a bad way to cope, mind you), he says getting snapped by the paparazzi became a near-daily occurrence. His presence in magazines, often topless, started making it look like his main hobby was being seen without a shirt, instead of just, well, liking to live near the sea. That, he admits, was downright annoying. You’d get the impression people thought he was parading about purely to show off his six-pack rather than, y’know, enjoying the sun like the rest of us might if we had the chance.

Grateful, but Not Simple

Despite the lot, Lutz does make it clear he’s thankful for what Twilight brought him—fame, attention, and unrivalled limelight among them. Even if, by his own account, all that ‘limelight’ can come with a glaring edge.

What’s He Up To Now?

In case you’re wondering, Kellan Lutz hasn’t vanished to the forest. Most recently, he was seen in Desert Dawn, a 2025 action thriller helmed by Marty Murray. He shares the screen with Helena Haro and Mike Ferguson, keeping his hand in the game even if the cameras are less intrusive than those beach days in his twenties.