Have you heard of the Twilight curse? It's where if you watch the movie, you receive a terrifying phone call afterward in which a girl's voice informs you that you're going to—wait, crap, I'm thinking of The Ring.

No, the Twilight curse is that Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are doomed to be forever tied to five rather well-known cinematic supernatural romance fantasy films. In that no one is ever going to be able to say their names again, no matter what roles they take on, without mentioning Bella Swan or Edward Cullen. Their acting will never be well-respected because it will be so overshadowed by the Twilight saga, and their ultimate fate will either be to disappear as five-hit wonders, or embrace the typecasting and churn out lukewarm versions of their vampiric selves from here on out.

My call? It could easily go either way.

E! Online mentioned the curse recently, citing Hollywood's tendency to mention Twilight alongside either actor regardless of what movie they're starring in. I can see how that might be disconcerting for them, but I'm not sure it means much—after all, the Twilight saga is basically consuming fans' brains right now. Let a year or so go by after Breaking Dawn Part 2, and then Pattinson and Stewart will have a better chance at making non-Twihard names for themselves.

As for whether or not they'll be able to escape their iconic roles at all, history shows that sometimes the choices an actor makes early in their career ends up haunting them forever. Ralph Macchio never quite broke free of being the Karate Kid, Roger Moore was forever linked to James Bond, and Mark Hamill will always be known as Luke Skywalker.

Then again, Harrison Ford managed to carve out quite the impressive career after his stints as Han Solo and Indiana Jones, Sean Connery's another Bond who went on to many well-received roles, and when we think of Neil Patrick Harris, we no longer immediately think of Doogie Howser, M.D.

Anyone who's ever held an iconic role will be tied to that character in some ways, of course. For the actors I just listed, they may have been able to move on and enjoy great success in Hollywood, but in any biopic longer than three paragraphs, their original breakout role will surely get mentioned.

Is that a curse? I suppose it might be in some ways, but they also had the rare opportunity of being part of something that was so incredibly popular, it became a cultural phenomenon. Isn't that what almost every would-be actor is hoping for?

Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are both young, so it seems like their future as standalone stars is entirely up to them. They'll need to choose projects carefully (especially Stewart, who needs to avoid moody/sullen roles for a while), and they'll need to work hard to prove they have the acting chops to earn recognition outside of the Twilight world.

I say they can do it. God knows they have the fame and fortune to help them on their way, so it's their game to lose.

What do you think about the supposed Twilight curse? Do you think Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart can break free of Edward and Bella?



Image via Breaking Dawn