It’s been a crazy year and a half since The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 was released, and while many fans may have spent 2018 reliving the magic that was Twilight, it seems that not all was perfect. While the final installment of the saga brought together some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, it also took its toll on several of them. While many of the cast and crew were able to work through their issues and emerge healthier than ever, it seems that not all was as happy as it could have been. Thanks to wonderful transcripts from the set by Shy Mendel, we now have a much better understanding of what happened behind the scenes during the making of Breaking Dawn.
The Cast Had Been Through Hell And Back Again
After spending over a year filming in Dublin, Croatia, and Hungary, as well as London, the Twilight cast and crew were looking forward to a well-deserved and long overdue break. Unfortunately, their bliss was short-lived when news broke that a number of the members of the cast and crew were being offered pro-bono legal help for their alleged sexual misconduct. Since then Stephenie Meyer and the filmmakers have been beset by allegations that they knew or should have known about the misconduct and failed to do anything about it. Most notably, William Merrill accused Meyer and the filmmakers of creating a pervasive culture of abuse and demanding perfection from the cast and crew. While Merrill’s claims have not been proven in court, legal aid has been granted to several of his alleged victims, including actress Ashley Judd. A trial is set to begin on January 15th, 2020, in Los Angeles.
If all of this sounds vaguely familiar, it should. This is the same scenario that repeated itself a few years ago in Tiger Woods Saga. When that franchise ended, it seemed as if the issues that had surfaced during the making of those films had been buried once and for all. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and several of its stars faced additional allegations that they too had committed sexual misconduct. Once again, the tabloids and semi-legitimate news outlets were filled with stories of alleged sexual misconduct, and the Twilight stars were forced to face their dark sides head-on.
Legal Aid And Merrill Have Helped Cast And Crew
Shortly after news broke that the Twilight cast and crew were being hit with a wave of sexual misconduct allegations, several of the stars and producers filed for legal aid. Since then, many of the alleged victims have had the burden of proof shifted to the defendant, which in most cases is a huge burden. In other words, their alleged victims had to come forward and prove that they had been sexually abused by Meyer, the filmmakers, or any of the stars. Thanks to legal aid and pro-bono counsel, the process has been made a bit more equal, and the alleged victims have been allowed to tell their stories to a judge who is deciding whether or not to grant them a civil case against Meyer and her company and producers. In some cases, this has meant that key witnesses for the plaintiff have been granted total exclusion from the courtroom, and in others, it’s meant that the alleged victims have been able to tell their stories face-to-face with a judge and jury. In the words of one of Meyer’s attorneys, “It’s been a great blessing to be able to help many people who’ve been traumatized by this already humiliating process.”
Most Of The Crew Have Begun To Heal
While the stars have had to put up with a year of ridicule and public exposure, it’s been a different story for the main cast and crew who have been healing from the alleged misconduct since the beginning. After spending more than a year shooting in Dublin, the Twilight cast and crew were looking forward to a long awaited breather. Unfortunately, it seems that the publicity had other plans for them. Thanks to Shy Mendel’s transcripts, we now know that the public and even some of the stars had already figured out that the Irish film industry was a basket case and had cheered on the rejections of the latest round of drafts from Wolf Saga. What’s more, the fans and media had cheered too, and the cast and crew were left feeling betrayed.
Most Of The Allegations Arise From A Perpetual Race To Outdo Each Other
Perhaps the most alarming thing about these allegations is that they resemble a perpetual race to outdo each other in terms of both sick and vulgar humor. Take, for example, Nancy Meyer who, in her 20s, would insist that her husband Stephenie Meyer sexually abuse her in front of a mirror while her mother and Step-sister Kristen star in the background and joke about it. Or look at actor Marc Wilton, who in his 30s would grab at the legs of his costar Ashley Judd as they walked down a street together, in what he later claimed was a spiritual bonding experience.
Unfortunately, the race to outsource as much as possible has run amok, and it seems that it’s not only the actors who are running scared. According to the legal aid petition, “Most of the accusations stem from a perpetual race to outdo each other in terms of both sick and vulgar humor. Some of the alleged victims say that they felt pressured to participate in this gruesome joke to the point where they were afraid to say no even though they knew it wasn’t right.”