Twilight saga “Eclipse” stars Jackson Rathbone and Taylor Lautner both have their Michigan connections. Rathbone went to Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan and is close friends with Interlochen buds, Ben Graupner and Ben Johnson. …Lautner grew up as a kid in Hudsonville near Grand Rapids, Michigan until his family moved to L.A. to pursue his career.
Life for Hudsonville native Taylor Lautner has been in whirlwind. In seven months since he starred in New Moon he has hosted SNL, presented an academy award and become one of the highest paid teen actors.
Later this year in the fall, Lautner begins work on the 2-film series, “Breaking Dawn” directed by Bill Condon. “It would have been impossible to make a movie well, doing it as one,” he said. “There’s so much to cover. It’s hard enough condensing 500 pages into a movie, and it would have been impossible to condense 800. “(Shooting ‘Breaking Dawn’) is going to be sad for us,” he said of his camaraderie with the “Twilight Saga” cast. “It’ll be hard to say goodbye, so I’m glad it’ll be a nice, long experience.”
Lautner and his father have started their own film production company, named “Tailor Made Entertainment”. Their first two films, to be used as a vehicle for Taylor are “Abduction” directed by John Singelton and “Stretch Armstrong”.
In the interview Lautner talks about his very close family, who moved from Hudsonville(By Grand Rapids, MI) to Los Angeles in 2003 to allow him to pursue an acting career.
Some bit parts in movies and TV led to a supporting role in 2005’s “Cheaper by the Dozen 2,” and a lead in Robert Rodriguez’s “Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D,” also released in ‘05. “I remember back when I viagra 10 years old, and I told my parents for the first time that this is what I want to do. They said, ‘Taylor, we can’t do it from Michigan. We’d have to live in Los Angeles if you want to do that.’ And I was like, ‘Really? OK!’ And my parents packed the bags and made the very risky and supportive move to L.A. to pursue my dream.”
