Twilight Budget

What is the budget of Twilight?

"Twilight," a fantasy released in 2008, was directed by Catherine Hardwicke and stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson. The production budget was $37,000,000, placing it in the mid-budget range for fantasy productions of its era.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

While specific budget breakdowns are not publicly available, typical cost drivers for a fantasy production like this include:

• Visual Effects & Creature Design: Fantasy productions require extensive VFX for magical elements, mythical creatures, and fantastical battle sequences.
• Costumes, Prosthetic Makeup & Production Design: Period-inspired or wholly original costumes, elaborate prosthetic and makeup applications, and richly detailed set construction are hallmarks of fantasy filmmaking.
• Music Score & Sound Design: Fantasy epics typically commission full orchestral scores recorded with 80 to 100 piece ensembles, plus extensive sound design for magical effects, creature vocalizations, and immersive world audio.
• Development: In early 2004, Greg Mooradian of Maverick Films, looking for young adult novels to adapt to film, received an unpublished manuscript of Twilight and began to read it.

What were the major cost factors in Twilight?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Twilight."

• Visual Effects: Visual Effects & Creature Design is one of the primary cost drivers in fantasy productions of this scale.
• Costumes: Costumes, Prosthetic Makeup & Production Design is one of the primary cost drivers in fantasy productions of this scale.
• Music Score: Music Score & Sound Design is one of the primary cost drivers in fantasy productions of this scale.

How Does Twilight's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $37,000,000, Twilight sits in the mid-budget range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

• House on Haunted Hill (1999): Budget $37,000,000, Worldwide Gross $40,846,082
• Magnolia (1999): Budget $37,000,000, Worldwide Gross $48,451,803
• 13 Going on 30 (2004): Budget $37,000,000, Worldwide Gross $96,458,118
• White Chicks (2004): Budget $37,000,000, Worldwide Gross $113,100,000
• Creed (2015): Budget $37,000,000, Worldwide Gross $173,600,000

The median budget for wide-release fantasy films in the 2000s ranges from $30 to 80M for mid-budget to $150M+ for tentpoles.

Twilight Box Office Performance

"Twilight" earned $195,553,813 domestically and $393,616,788 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $37,000,000, the film performed strongly at the box office.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Twilight," that break-even threshold was roughly $74,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $393,616,788, the film cleared that threshold comfortably.

• Production Budget: $37,000,000
• Worldwide Gross: $393,616,788
• Net Return: $356,616,788
• ROI: approximately 963.8%

At 963.8%, "Twilight" earned roughly $10.64 for every $1 invested in production.

Twilight Production History

In early 2004, Greg Mooradian of Maverick Films, looking for young adult novels to adapt to film, received an unpublished manuscript of Twilight and began to read it. After reaching the scene where Bella Swan is saved by Edward Cullen from being hit by a car, Mooradian understood the appeal of the novel. He soon brought the manuscript to David Gale, then executive vice president of Paramount Pictures' MTV Films division, to propose a film adaptation, believing the novel to be "tailor-made" for the MTV brand's teen audience.

Several actresses, including Lily Collins and Jennifer Lawrence, screen tested for the role of Bella Swan, while Frances Bean Cobain turned down the opportunity to audition for the role. Michelle Trachtenberg also turned down the part due to scheduling issues. Hardwicke desired to test Kristen Stewart, who she had seen in Into the Wild and became her first choice for the part.

Principal photography took 44 days, after more than a week of rehearsals, and completed on May 2, 2008. Meyer visited the production set three times and was consulted on different aspects of the story; she also has a brief cameo in the film. Cast members who portrayed vampires avoided sunlight to make their skin pale, though makeup was also applied for that effect, and wore contact lenses: "We did the golden color because the Cullens have those golden eyes.

Awards and Recognition

34 wins & 16 nominations total

Critical Reception

Based on 223 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 48% and a weighted average score of 5.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Having lost much of its bite transitioning to the big screen, Twilight will please its devoted fans, but do little for the uninitiated." On Metacritic, it has a weighted mean score of 56 based on 38 reviews from film critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.