Twilight spinoff movies to get release on Facebook
Facebook is teaming up with movie studio Lionsgate and author Stephenie Meyer to revive the Twilight franchise, with a series of short films that will be released exclusively on the social media platform.
Lionsgate and Meyer announced plans Tuesday to select five aspiring female directors to make short films based on Twilight characters.
There have been five movies based on Meyer’s vampires and werewolves saga, with the last one released in 2012.
By working with Facebook to cultivate its young audience with new instalments of the stories Hollywood could be paving the way for the next blockbuster movie.
“We think Facebook is a great way for us to introduce the world of Twilight to a whole new audience while re-energizing existing fans,” Michael Burns, Lionsgate’s vice-chairman, told the New York Times.
He also teased fans about future instalments — possibly a new book from Meyer or Facebook streaming of another Lionsgate franchise, The Hunger Games.
The news of Facebook’s exclusive release comes the day after Netflix announced it would have the first rights to release a sequel to martial arts movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
Hollywood appears to be interested in finding new outlets for its products and Facebook has 1.3 billion monthly users worldwide.
For Facebook, this is an opportunity to move beyond its role as a marketplace for movie trailers.
At the same time, it is cultivating its original demographic – the original Twilight fans are now in their late 20s — while introducing a new generation to the franchise.
The new series will be short movies that extend the stories of Twilight characters – possibly popular but secondary characters such as werewolf Jacob Black or vampire Alice Cullen.
A Facebook post solicits young female directors to compete for the opportunity to tell the next Twilight story.
Meyer, Twilight actress Kristen Stewart, Kate Winslet, Octavia Spencer and Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke are among a panel who will judge proposals. There will also be fan involvement in the competition.
