Taylor Lautner is an American actor, model, and martial artist. He is best known for playing the role of ‘Jacob Black’ in ‘The Twilight Saga’ film series. After having gained prominence as a teenage heartthrob, Lautner was ranked amongst the ‘50 sexiest men’ in Hollywood. He was also the highest-paid teenage actor in America. A martial arts enthusiast, Lautner is also extremely passionate about football, baseball, jazz, and hip-hop dance. A three-time ‘Junior World’ champion in martial arts, Lautner’s entry into Hollywood was through sheer hard-work and determination. He began his acting career by appearing in minor roles on television. He also did a few commercials before voicing characters in movies like ‘What’s New, Scooby-Doo?’ and ‘My Wife and Kids.’ His popularity increased after appearing in films like ‘Cheaper by the Dozen 2’ and ‘The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D.’ He then went on to play minor roles in a number of movies and occasionally worked as a model as well. Interestingly, Lautner had not heard of the ‘Twilight’ series before he was urged by a friend to audition for the role of ‘Jacob Black.’ The massive success of the ‘Twilight’ film series catapulted Lautner and his co-stars into the world of stardom, which would change their lives forever.
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Childhood & Early Life
Taylor Daniel Lautner was born on February 11, 1992, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, to Deborah and Daniel Lautner. He and his younger sister, Makena, were raised as Roman Catholics. He is of German, French, Dutch, and Native American origin.
He attended his first karate class at the age of six and trained under Michael Chaturantabut, the founder of ‘Xtreme Martial Arts.’ By the age of eight, he had become a black belt holder. He went on to win several junior martial arts championships. In 2003, he was seen at the ‘ISKA Karate Event’ which was aired on television.
He attended a public school in Valencia and indulged in many extra-curricular activities like football, baseball, and hip-hop dance. It was during this time that he moved to Santa Clarita, California, and began acting.
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Career
After moving to Los Angeles, he played a number of minor roles on television and commercials. He then appeared in ‘Shadow Fury,’ a television film, in 2001.
Following the brief success of ‘Shadow Fury,’ he landed a voice role in ‘Rugrats Go Wild.’ He then appeared in ‘The Bernie Mac Show,’ ‘My Wife and Kids,’ and ‘Summerland.’
He then went back to voicing characters in movies like ‘Danny Phantom,’ ‘Duck Dodgers,’ and ‘What’s New, Scooby Doo?’ At the same time, he also landed modeling assignments. He was soon picked by Adam Shankman to play ‘Elliot Murtaugh’ in the film ‘Cheaper by the Dozen 2.’
His first breakthrough performance was in the film ‘The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D’ in 2005. Although the movie received negative reviews from critics, it increased Lautner’s popularity.
In 2008, he was cast as ‘Jack Spivey’ in the short-lived NBC drama ‘My Own Worst Enemy.’ He also appeared in ‘Love Inc.’ and ‘He’s a Bully, Charlie Brown.’
The same year, filmmakers began searching for a teenage actor, preferably with Native-American origin, to play the role of ‘Jacob Black’ in the first installment of the ‘Twilight’ film series. During his audition, he read lines from the second and third book along with Kristen Stewart, who was already chosen for the role of ‘Isabella Swan.’
He was selected for his ravishingly good looks, persona, and dialogue delivery skills. The movie went on to become a critical and commercial success.
In an attempt to do justice to the role of the lovelorn wolf-boy, he weight-trained extensively and gained approximately 30 pounds of muscle. His physique wooed women across the world and turned him into a teen idol and sex symbol.
In 2009 and 2010, he appeared in ‘The Twilight Saga: New Moon’ and ‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,’ the second and third installment of the ‘Twilight’ series, respectively.
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In 2010, he was also cast as ‘Willy Harrinton’ in ‘Valentine’s Day’ where he played Taylor Swift’s love interest.
Following the success of the three ‘Twilight’ movies, he appeared in ‘Abduction’ alongside Lily Collins, which did poorly at the box-office. His poor performance in the film was heavily criticized by the critics.
He appeared in the last two parts of the ‘Twilight’ film series, ‘Breaking Dawn Part 1’ and ‘Breaking Dawn Part 2,’ which released in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
He also starred in ‘Grown Ups 2’ and ‘Tracers,’ which released in 2013 and 2015 respectively.
In 2016, he was cast in a drama film titled ‘Run the Tide.’ The same year, he also co-starred in Ryan Murphy’s comedy horror series ‘Scream Queens.’
Major Works
He is best known for his role as ‘Jacob Black’ in the ‘Twilight’ film series. The film series increased his popularity and established him as a sex symbol. The highest-grossing romantic vampire-werewolf fantasy captured the hearts of millions around the globe and continues to enjoy its status as one of the ‘most-watched’ films in the history of romantic films.
Awards & Achievements
He won the ‘Teen Choice Award’ for ‘Best Breakthrough Performance-Male’ for ‘Twilight’ in 2009.
He was named in ‘The 50 Sexiest Men of 2010’ list by ‘Glamour’ magazine.
He was ranked fourth in ‘People’ magazine’s list of ‘Most Amazing Bodies.’
He won the ‘People’s Choice Award’ for ‘Favorite On-screen Team’ with Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart for ‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse’ in 2011.
He was awarded the ‘MTV Movie Award’ for ‘Best Shirtless Performance’ for ‘The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2’ in 2013.
Personal Life & Legacy
He was romantically involved with actor-singers Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez. From 2013 to 2015, he dated Canadian-Greek actress Marie Avgeropoulos. In 2018, he started dating Taylor Dome, who works as a nurse in California.
According to the popular magazine ‘Men’s Health,’ Lautner follows a strict diet and continues to train in martial arts during his spare time. He resides with his parents and sister in California.
Trivia
During a promotional interview for ‘The Twilight Saga: New Moon,’ this Hollywood actor was asked to stay in his hotel room as around 2000 girls had stormed the hotel lobby to catch a glimpse of him.
The ‘Twilight’ actor does not mind being called by the name of the character he plays in his movies.
