INTERVIEW: Taylor Lautner

Taylor Lautner

Actor, martial arts champion and mega hottie, Taylor Lautner is at the top of his game. He is becoming a full-fledged action star with movies like the upcoming ‘Abduction’, and staying true to his loyal fans by reprising his role as Jacob Black in the final two installments of ‘The Twilight Saga’. Get to know Taylor Lautner, the actor who was named #1 on Access Hollywood’s “Top Five Hollywood Abs”!

Full Name: Taylor Daniel Lautner
Birthday: February 11th, 1992
Hometown: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Favorite Restaurant: Olive Garden
Favorite Movie: ‘Bravehart’
Favorite TV Show: ‘The Apprentice’
Favorite Color: Blue
Fun Fact: Taylor was the highest paid teen actor in 2010!

How are you similar and different from Jacob Black?
Taylor: (Jacob’s angry werewolf side) is not like me in real life; I’m like Jacob’s Native American side. I’m friendly, outgoing, energetic and easy to talk to.

What do you do during your downtime on the ‘Twilight’ sets?
Taylor: When I had downtime on set, which was not often, I would be walking around and hanging out with the crew. I would just be all over the place. I’d be in the hair and makeup trailer, I’d be in the grips’ trailer, I’d be everywhere because I really loved the crew.

Did you do your own stunts in the ‘Twilight’ films?
Taylor: I got to do almost all of my own stunts. I love the stunts, so to be able to have that opportunity was incredible. The transformation (scenes) were really cool because they put me up on wires, and I would run and take a big leap in the air and be swung ten feet in the air, sometimes even higher. And then they would jerk me so I’d have to stop and hold a pose. And that was so they could do the CGI, where they take my body and transform it into the wolf’s.

How is it filming with Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart?
Taylor: It’s a lot of fun. The most challenging part is having to hate Edward because I’m looking in the eyes of Rob and he’s such a nice, funny guy.

Jacob Black is supposed to be 6’7. How are you made to look taller onscreen?
Taylor: It’s just little tricks: There’s camera angles, there’s different sized platforms up on a hill…just little things and they help.

You gained thirty pounds of muscle for your role in ‘New Moon’. How did you do that?
Taylor: I was in the gym about five days a week, because it’s important to get your recovery time and not overwork yourself, because if you’re overworking yourself…I was trying to put on weight and if I was in the gym too much I’d be burning the calories I’m trying to take in. The most important thing was the eating side. Everyone thinks it was the actual getting in the gym. That was easy- I was motivated. So getting in the gym was easy for me. But the eating was pretty hard. It was just eating a lot. I found out I had to consume at least three thousand two hundred calories a day just to maintain. And I’m not trying to maintain, I’m trying to gain. It was difficult.

How do you choose your roles?
Taylor: Pure instinct, depending on what I’m being offered. I have to read many scripts, and if I find a script that I like, I go for it. It depends on the story and the character. I like to challenge myself with different subjects, I don’t want to go down one road, I want to mix it up every now and then.

Can you still go out in public without being recognized?
Taylor: Yeah. You have to be creative. It’s a matter of choosing where you go. A mall? Probably not. A movie theatre? Probably not. I have my hangouts. The good, low-key restaurants. Sometimes you are just like “I don’t care! I want to go bowling! And I’m going to do it!” And you do it. Sure enough, it is a little hectic, but you had fun. Then you go back home and go, “I’m not going bowling for a while.”