'Twilight' director drops truth bomb over Robert Pattinson casting

Surprisingly, the heartthrob Robert Pattinson was not the preferred choice of the studio and fans alike for Twilight. But, the director Catherine Hardwicke insisted on casting the British actor.

Spilling the beans on the Watchalong podcast about the behind-the-camera story of the Batman star's first massive role, the filmmaker shared, "When he came over to my house, he had black bangs for hair and was kind of out of shape because he was hanging out at the pub all the time."

She continued, "After we did the fun auditions [with Kristen] at my house for a couple hours, then I looked the next morning at all the footage I shot and recorded and I thought it worked not just in person but it works on screen."

Adding, "I had to be sure. Of course in person I just got carried away, but you have to be sure it translates [to the screen]."

However, the 68-year-old noted the studio raised concerns about the choice, "Then I sent it to Summit and he went over to meet them."

The Thirteen director continued, "They called me back and go, 'Do you think you can make this guy look good?' I said, 'Yeah, I do. Did you see his cheekbones? We're doing a makeover on the hair and everything and he's going to start working out and he's going to be gorgeous."

Noting, "But they didn't believe it at first. He like walked over there with a stained shirt or something. It was Rob."

Ultimately, Robert was cast into Edward Cullen's character, prompting his popularity to reach its nadir.