Twi-hards everywhere no doubt spat their breakfast all over their Team Edward t-shirts yesterday upon hearing the news Rachelle Lefevre is being swapped out for Bryce Dallas Howard in the saga's threequel, Eclipse. Now, the Canadian actress is telling her side of the story, saying she was similarly "stunned."
Lefevre, who originated the role of revenge-bent villainous vampire Victoria in Twilight and the upcoming New Moon, issued a statement reacting to Summit Entertainment's casting switcheroo late Wednesday.
"I was stunned by Summit's decision to recast the role of Victoria for Eclipse," she wrote.
"I was fully committed to the Twilight saga, and to the portrayal of Victoria. I turned down several other film opportunities and, in accordance with my contractual rights, accepted only roles that would involve very short shooting schedules."
As reported yesterday, Lefevre is expected to start work on the indie drama Barney's Version in August, around the same time production on Eclipse begins. However, the actress explained in her official statement that she didn't anticipate that gig would wind up interfering with her commitment to whoop ass in future installments of the Twilight saga.
"My commitment to Barney's Version is only ten days," she said. "Summit picked up my option for Eclipse. Although the production is over three months long, Summit said they had a conflict during those 10 days and would not accommodate me.
Summit, however, bristled at Lefevre's comments, and has since replied to her statement with a release of their own -- also submitted to Access Hollywood.
"We at Summit Entertainment are disappointed by Rachelle Lefevre's recent comments which attempt to make her career choices the fault of the studio," they said in a release.
And from the rest of their statement, it seems the "scheduling conflict" shenanigans they mentioned in the initial re-casting report aren't so straightforward.
The studio claims that Lefevre didn't inform them of her commitment to Barney's Version until July 20, which they allege was several weeks after she accepted the project.
"Summit had acted in good faith that she would be available to fulfill her obligations both in terms of rehearsals and shooting availability for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. We feel that her choice to withhold her scheduling conflict information from us can be viewed as a lack of cooperative spirit which affected the entire production," their statement reads.
"Ms. Lefevre took a role in the other film that places her in Europe during the required rehearsal time, and at least ten days of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse's principal photography. This period is essential for both rehearsal time with the cast, and for filming at key locations that are only available during the initial part of production," Summit said.
"The fact remains that Ms. Lefevre's commitment to the other project—which she chose to withhold from Summit until the last possible moment—makes her unfortunately unavailable to perform the role of Victoria in [Eclipse]."
All of this appears to have come as a surprise to Lefevre.
"Given the length of filming for Eclipse, never did I fathom I would lose the role over a 10 day overlap," she said in her official statement. "I was happy with my contract with Summit and was fully prepared to continue to honour it. Summit chose simply to recast the part."
"I am greatly saddened that I will not get to complete my portrayal of Victoria for the Twilight audience. This is a story, a theatrical journey and a character that I truly love and about which I am very passionate. I will be forever grateful to the fan support and loyalty I’ve received since being cast for this role, and I am hurt deeply by Summit’s surprising decision to move on without me. I wish the cast and crew of Eclipse only the very best.”
When we last spoke with Lefevre, at the MuchMusic Video Award in June, the Canadian actress told us how excited she was to start work on Eclipse's fight scenes. Here's the video:
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