GQ has a great Q&A with Twilight newcomer Xavier Samuel.  It’s a cute interview. You know I love him and he seems quite charming talking about Shakespeare and acting opposite a stick…

Were you a fan of the Twilight series? Tell the truth.
I watched the first film on the plane, on the way over to Vancouver. Then I went straight to the bookstore.

Funny. You play Riley, a hungry newborn vampire out on a rampage. Full disclosure: I read the book, and Riley’s only on one page.
Yes, I was flipping through the book, thinking: Where’s Riley? He’s whittled down to one line. But in the film, we venture into the world of Riley and watch him assembling this newborn army. It’s more action-packed. And it gives me something more to do, thankfully.

Do you get to inflict much damage on the world?
There was no neck biting. I threw a vampire off of a burning car. I also threw a massive log with one hand. The log was attached to a hydraulic system. It made me look really strong.

Is it hard to be the new kid in a franchise like this?
It is a bit like the first day of school. But I felt like part of the family.

Most of your scenes are with Bryce Dallas Howard—who plays the villain, Victoria. She was also new to the Twilight family. Did that help?
We bonded quite early. We just kind of hit it off from the very beginning, rehearsed a lot of stuff, and talked about this almost Lady Macbeth kind of relationship.

You’re intellectualizing Twilight.
You see that Shakespeare reference I just made? [laughs] But she manipulates him in that way.

I’m impressed. How was the green-screen work? Obviously you’re not fighting wolves.
The director would yell Action! and this guy puts a stick in your face. That stick is the wolf. They didn’t teach that at drama school. I must have been sick that day.

Read more here.