Anna Kendrick has already had an impressive career in film, working on a variety of projects and even earning an Oscar nomination for her role opposite George Clooney in Up in the Air. One of Kendrick's big movie gigs was playing Jessica in the Twilight franchise, appearing in four different installments in the property as Bella's high school friend. But it turns out that filming for New Moon could have potentially prevented her from working on Up in the Air, and therefore getting her first Academy Award nomination.
Twilight was a pop culture sensation in the early 2000s, with both the novels and movies being consumed by a massive fanbase. Playing Jessica gave Anna Kendrick a steady job, and allowed her to take passion projects on the side. But it turns out that filming for New Moon and Up in the Air were at about the same time, with Kendrick contracted to appear in the Twilight sequel. The 34 year-old actress recently spoke to the scheduling acrobatics necessary for her to appear in both movies, saying:
I was shooting Up in the Air by the time that we were making that second movie. So they rearranged a lot of scheduling stuff. Cause it would have been a real dick move, but legally they had the right to stop me from doing Up in the Air. So shout out to those guys.
Well, that worked out. Film franchises include contracts for the cast to appear on set when needed, and New Moon's shooting had the potential to cause Anna Kendrick to lose her gig on Up in the Air. Luckily the schedule was switched around to allow her to appear in both movies, eventually earning an Oscar nomination in the process.
Anna Kendrick's comments to Vanity Fair help to peel back the curtain on being a film star, and the tough decision that sometime come into play once contracts are concerned. Because if the producers and director of Twilight Saga: New Moon decided to, they could have prevented Kendrick from filming Up in the Air. Luckily Jessica isn't one of the larger characters in the Twilight franchise, so some clever scheduling helped the actress to fulfill responsibilities for both movies.
New Moon is mostly focused on Bella mourning the loss of Edward, and becoming close to Jacob in the process. During the protagonist's depression, she pushed away her friends at Forks, including Jessica. She eventually tries to reconnect with Anna Kendrick's character, but their night is derailed when Bella starts acting erratic and seeking out danger in order to see a vision of Edward.
Twilight fans are currently gearing up for the release of Stephanie Meyer's new novel Midnight Sun, which will re-tell the events of Twilight through the perspective of Edward Cullen. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
