Hollywood Movies

Edi Gathegi Interview - Twilight

with Rebecca Murray

Edi Gathegi plays one of the 'bad' vampires in one of the most anticipated movies of 2008 - "Twilight." At the premiere of "Sex Drive," Gathegi talked about the vampire mythology of "Twilight" and bringing the books to the big screen.

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Transcript: Edi Gathegi Interview - Twilight

Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the Los Angeles Premiere of Sex Drive.

Edi Gathegi – 'Laurent' in Twilight

Donuts…

Edi Gathegi: "Donuts. She's eating one."

Okay, but vampires don't eat donuts.

Edi Gathegi: "We don't eat at all. We drink."

But you don't have fangs.

Edi Gathegi: "No. this is a new mythology so the rules are slightly different in this mythology."

What do you think about the new rules?

Edi Gathegi: "I love them. Yeah, because I've never really been a big fan of vampire stories. There are certain things that are very cliché and this kind of like bends the rules and completely changes everything around, and that's what I like about it. And this is like a romance story; it's not about the vampires. It just happens to be set in the world of vampires, which I like."

The new trailer just hit and people are going crazy over it. Are you ready for this?

Edi Gathegi: "Do you love the trailer?"

I do love the trailer.

Edi Gathegi: "I love the trailer, too. I'm excited. I don't know if I'm ready. That's an odd question. We'll see what happens when it comes out. I'm excited and I'm anticipating it."

Being ready is a whole different thing.

Edi Gathegi: "Yeah, I mean, because I don't know what I'm being ready for. I don't know if it's going to be as crazy as people are saying it's going to be, so… One day at a time, baby."

Do you have a doubt this is going to be as big as people think?

Edi Gathegi: "I just don't want to be disappointed so I'm managing my expectations."

That's a good way to put it. Did you read all the books?

Edi Gathegi: "I read them all."

Even the last one that just came out?

Edi Gathegi: "Yeah, the fourth one. 700 and something pages, flipped through it in two days."

Did you?

Edi Gathegi: "Yeah, it's good. She writes…it's so accessible, you know? And it's good so…"

If you weren't in the movie, would you have been reading it?

Edi Gathegi: "Absolutely not because I wouldn't have known that it existed. I got the job and then I did the work as an actor, and then I was like, 'This is fantastic.' But I've been promoting the hell out of it, not because I'm in it but because they're good books. So I'm telling everybody to read them before they catch the movie."

Okay, since you've read them and since you're in the film, are there a lot of changes?

Edi Gathegi: "Well, you're fitting a 500 page book into a two hour movie so things have to be truncated. But we had Stephenie [Meyer] as a consultant on the film so she made sure that it was very close to her vision, and it is very close. It's a really close adaptation."

So the next one, if it comes up and they film it, you'll be in it. Are you signed on?

Edi Gathegi: "I don't know. I hope I do a good enough job, and I hope that they actually make the second one. And then we'll see if I'm going to be a part of it."

Have you heard any rumors?

Edi Gathegi: "I've heard a lot of rumors. I just read online that there was a rumor that it's been greenlit. But rumors are rumors."

Nothing official with the cast?

Edi Gathegi: "Hopefully the rumors are based in reality and that we can work again."

What do you think about the comparisons that it's going to be as big as Harry Potter?

Edi Gathegi: "Yeah, that's… It would be lovely if we had their kind of success, because they did very, very well. So, I mean, fingers crossed we have half of what they had and we'll be fine."

Tell me about the fight scenes in this. Do you get into the fighting? Do we get to see you in action this time?

Edi Gathegi: "You have to watch the movie. I'm not going to give it away, you know? You've got to buy the cow."

Sex Drive is a teen romantic comedy and it's a roadtrip. Have you had any weird roadtrips?

Edi Gathegi: "I've had a lot of weird roadtrips. Some of them I actually can't talk about. I can't talk About, About, I can't talk about them."

Okay, favorite teen romantic comedy?

Edi Gathegi: "American Pie."

Why do you like the American Pie series?

Edi Gathegi: "I don't know. I didn't say the series, I just said American Pie. I didn't say I didn't like the rest of them. I don't know. I was just at a place in my life where that resonated with me."