‘Twilight’ TV show ‘Midnight Sun’ lands at Netflix but with a twist
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: An animated adaptation of ‘Midnight Sun’, Stephenie Meyer's reimagining of the ‘Twilight’ story, is currently in development. Released in 2020, the novel revisits the events of the original series but through the eyes of Edward Cullen, offering fans a new perspective on the beloved romance that once centered around Bella Swan.
The manuscript drafted early enough to help Robert Pattinson dive deeper into Edward's character for the 2008 film, faced an unexpected setback when the first twelve chapters were leaked online. This forced Meyer to pause writing, leading to a significant delay in the book's eventual release.
Netflix officially greenlights animated series ‘Midnight Sun’
On Wednesday, September 4, Netflix officially greenlit the ‘Midnight Sun’ animated series, which has been in development at Lionsgate Television for almost two years. Sinead Daly, known for her work on ‘Tell Me Lies’, ‘The Walking Dead: World Beyond’, and ‘Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency’, will serve as both writer and executive producer for the series.
Midnight Sun, an animated series adaptation of Stephenie Meyer's novel and the retelling of Twilight from Edward Cullen's perspective, is officially in development. pic.twitter.com/iSzk3l7dnp
— Netflix (@netflix) September 4, 2024
Joining Daly as executive producers are Stephenie Meyer, Meghan Hibbett, Wyck Godfrey, Marty Bowen, Erik Feig, and Samie Kim Falvey. This marks the first new installment in the ‘Twilight’ franchise since the release of ‘The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2’ back in 2012.
What ‘Midnight Sun’ means for the ‘Twilight’ franchise
After the four original ‘Twilight’ novels were turned into five films from 2008 to 2012, the franchise largely went quiet. While Stephenie Meyer revisited the series with retellings like the gender-swapped ‘Life and Death’ in 2015 and ‘Midnight Sun’, she hasn’t introduced any new sequels or spinoffs beyond the 2010 novella ‘The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner’. The same holds true for the movie adaptations, which have remained dormant since.
The creative choices made for ‘Midnight Sun’ could shape the direction of the franchise's future on screen. However, it seems unlikely that the original cast would reunite, especially since Robert Pattinson has openly discussed his complicated feelings about his role in the series. In a 2018 interview with Variety, he even admitted, "I stopped mentally progressing around the time when I started doing those movies."
‘Midnight Sun’ trailer
There isn't an official trailer for ‘Midnight Sun’ just yet, but stay tuned to MEAWW for the latest updates!