Kristen Jaymes Stewart (born April 9, 1990 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actress, best known for playing Bella Swan in the The Twilight Saga film series.
Prior to Twilight, Stewart was a little-known actress who appeared mostly in independent films, occasionally getting supporting roles in studio films. At age ten, she had her first major role playing Jodie Foster's daughter in Panic Room. During this period, she was generally considered to be an up-and-coming talent by those who were aware of her.
Although she rose to mainstream fame through Twilight, the films caused public opinion of her to deteriorate a bit, partly due to her being considered indistinguishable from her character Bella. Stewart also came off as a bit of a Shrinking Violet at the time, appeared to not enjoy being famous, and seemed to prefer her pre-Twilight life. She has opened up considerably since, however, with her comfort in the public eye seeming to develop alongside a growing post-Twilight appreciation for her acting skill.
After finishing the Twilight series and portraying Snow White in Snow White & the Huntsman, Stewart returned to small independent films. Her acting fortunes appear to have been looking up since 2015, as she became the first-ever American actress to win a César Award (the French version of the Academy Awards), for Best Supporting Actress in Clouds of Sils Maria. That film also made her something of a muse for director Olivier Assayas, who cast her again in Personal Shopper. In 2021, she starred in Spencer as Diana, Princess of Wales and gained a great deal of critical acclaim, and an Oscar nomination (for Best Actress), for her performance. Since late 2013, she has also been the ambassador for renowned fashion brand Chanel.
Stewart is openly bisexual, and has been in several high-profile relationships with both male and female celebrities. She has been with screenwriter Dylan Meyer since 2019, and they got engaged in November of 2021.
Filmography:
- Panic Room (2002) as Sarah Altman
- Cold Creek Manor (2003) as Kristen Tilson
- Speak (2004) as Melinda Sordino
- Catch That Kid (2004): Madeline Phillips
- Fierce People (2005) as Maya
- Zathura (2005) as Lisa
- The Messengers (2007) as Jess
- In the Land of Women (2007) as Lucy Hardwicke
- Into the Wild (2007) as Tracy Tatro
- The Yellow Handkerchief (2008) as Martine
- Jumper (2008) as Sophie
- The Twilight Saga (2008-2012) as Bella Swan
- Twilight (2008)
- New Moon (2009)
- Eclipse (2010)
- Breaking Dawn Part 1 (2011)
- Breaking Dawn Part 2 (2012)
- Adventureland (2009) as Em Lewis
- The Runaways (2010) as Joan Jett
- Welcome to the Rileys (2010) as Mallory
- Snow White & the Huntsman (2012) as Snow White
- On the Road (2012) as Marylou/LuAnne Henderson
- Camp X-Ray (2014) as Amy "Blondie" Cole
- Still Alice (2014) as Lydia Howland
- Clouds of Sils Maria (2014) as Valentine
- American Ultra (2015) as Phoebe Larson
- Equals (2016) as Nia
- Certain Women (2016) as Beth Travis
- Café Society (2016) as Vonnie
- Personal Shopper (2016) as Maureen Cartwright
- Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (2016) as Kathryn Lynn
- Saturday Night Live (2017, 2019) as herself/various characters
- Lizzie (2018) as Bridget Sullivan
- JT LeRoy (2018) as Savannah Knoop
- Charlie's Angels (2019) as Sabina Wilson
- Underwater (2020) as Norah Price
- Happiest Season (2020) as Abby
- Spencer (2021) as Diana, Princess of Wales
- Crimes of the Future (2022) as Timlin
- Irma Vep (2022) as Lianna (1 episode)
- Love Lies Bleeding (2024) as Lou
This actress provides examples of:
- Action Girl: Despite one of her most famous roles being somewhat notorious as a Damsel in Distress, Stewart has played several characters who can get themselves out of trouble, including Sabina in Charlie's Angels, Snow White in Snow White & the Huntsman, Phoebe in American Ultra, a bank-robbing twelve year old in Catch That Kid, and Norah in Underwater (who ends up literally punching out Cthulhu). And even Bella gets to kick some butt in the final Twilight film after becoming a vampire.
- Awesome, Dear Boy: She eagerly agreed to do Spencer simply from hearing the director describe how he wanted to create an avant-garde "tone poem" more than a narrative film, without reading a word of the script.
- The Cameo: As Lianna in the final episode of Irma Vep.
- Creator Backlash:
- She has not been quiet about how much she disliked her fame from Twilight. After the franchise ended, she went back to indie projects with the occasional studio picture.
- Although she doesn't regret doing the movie as a whole, she was very uncomfortable doing numerous underwater scenes in, well, Underwater, due to the fact she has a fear of water.
- In the lead-up to Spencer's release, she went so far as to say she's only proud of five of the films she's made, though she didn't mention any names.
- In a 2024 interview with Variety, she mentioned that while it initially seemed like a good idea, she "hated" making the 2019 version of Charlie's Angels and implied she felt it was inferior to the 2000 movie, which she enjoyed.
- The Danza: In Cold Creek Manor, she played a character called Kristen Tilson.
- Dawson Casting:
- Initially averted and then played straight with the Twilight series. Bella is seventeen at the start and Stewart turned eighteen while filming the first movie, but as she continued to portray Bella across four more movies, although Bella is eighteen by the end of the franchise, she was in her early twenties.
- Earlier in The Yellow Handkerchief, she was eighteen playing a fifteen-year-old.
- In The Runaways, she's nineteen playing Joan Jett at seventeen. However, the film covers two years, matching Kristen's age with Joan's by the end.
- Doing It for the Art:
- She agreed to a salary of less than $200,000 for her role as Marylou in the film adaptation of Jack Kerouac's On the Road after its budget was drastically cut, purely out of love for the novel.
- In general, she made it clear after Twilight that she was a lot happier doing smaller arthouse films than she was doing Twilight, although she hasn't ruled out bigger films.
- Drag King: She, Brie Larson and Anne Hathaway do this in the music video for Jenny Lewis' "Just One Of The Guys".
- Dyeing for Your Art:
- She wore brown contact lenses to portray Bella Swan, to more closely match Bella's description from the books (Bella has "chocolate brown" eyes, while Kristen's eyes are green).
- For her role as a runaway teenage stripper in Welcome to the Rileys she learned how to pole dance, deprived herself of sleep, chain-smoked, and ate mostly junk food. As a result her body and legs were covered with bruises, her skin was blemished, and she constantly looked tired.
- She cut and dyed her hair into Joan Jett's signature style for The Runaways.
- She visibly shaved her hair entirely with a engineering-centred role in Underwater, citing her consideration of it as a safety hazard in real life; she has however been quick to confess she wanted to shave her head for some time, and took the idea to her director before doing so.
- Enforced Method Acting: Welcome to the Rileys was her first film after turning eighteen, and thus the first project where she didn't have guardians or tutors with her. She felt that added to her performance as a runaway living alone.
- Even the Girls Want Her: Much of her fanbase is made up of besotted young women.
- Fake Brit: As Diana, Princess of Wales in Spencer and sort-of in Snow White and the Huntsman (Snow White is technically from a fantasy realm yet speaks with a British accent). She's actually pretty good at it, as this clip from Conan showcases
. - Hidden Depths: Stewart plays the acoustic guitar and electric guitar, as well as the trumpet. She also enjoys photography as a hobby.
- I Am Not Spock: As far as her fans, her haters, and the media (especially the tabloids) are concerned, she and Bella Swan are the same person. Downplayed as she's gotten recognition for more diverse roles in Happiest Season, Spencer, and others.
- Lady Swears-A-Lot: Not only does she use profanity regularly, but her character from Welcome to the Rileys has the same effect.
- Playing Against Type: Best known for playing the virginal, moody and self-conscious Bella, Stewart plays the sensual, free-spirited Marylou in the film adaptation of On the Road.
- Star-Making Role: She was hailed as an up-and-coming talent from indie films, but Twilight made her a household name.
- Those Two Actors: She's done three films so far with Jesse Eisenberg, Adventureland, American Ultra and Café Society.
