Regardless of one’s opinion on whether Bryce Dallas Howard will serve as an effective replacement for the Victoria character that Rachelle Lefevre played in the first two “Twilight” films, Lefevre’s statement on the matter undoubtedly earned fan sympathy. Describing the “scheduling conflicts” as a ten-day overlap made the issue seem minor and thus made the recasting appear questionable.
Summit Entertainment, however, tells the story a bit differently. Responding to the Lefevre statement, the studio says that Lefevre withheld information regarding her scheduling conflict until last week, despite agreeing to the August start date for “Eclipse” in June.
”Summit had acted in good faith that she would be available to fulfill her obligations both in terms of rehearsals and shooting availability for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,” said the statement. “We feel that her choice to withhold her scheduling conflict information from us can be viewed as a lack of cooperative spirit which affected the entire production.”
Lefevre said in her statement that the overlap–for work on film “Barney’s Version”–was minor and did not negatively impact her commitment to the “Twilight” franchise.
“Contrary to Ms. Lefevre’s statement,” added the studio, “it is simply untrue that the Studio dismissed her over a ten day overlap. It is not about a ten day overlap, but instead about the fact that The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is an ensemble production that has to accommodate the schedules of numerous actors while respecting the established creative vision of the filmmaker and most importantly the story.”
