David Slade at the London premiere of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.
In early November 2008, Summit announced that they had attained the rights to the remaining books in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series: New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn.In February 2009, Summit confirmed that they would begin working on The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. On the same day, it was announced that since New Moon director Chris Weitz would be in post-production for New Moon when Eclipse began shooting, he would not be directing the third film.Instead, the film would be helmed by director David Slade, with Melissa Rosenberg returning as screenwriter. David Slade dove right into the project, interviewing cast members individually between two and three times to discuss characters and the plot.
Casting
Summit Entertainment revealed that they would replace Rachelle Lefevre, who played an evil vampire named Victoria, with Bryce Dallas Howard in late July 2009. They attributed the change to scheduling conflicts, and Lefevre responded by saying she was "stunned" and "greatly saddened" by the decision.Bryce Dallas Howard was initially approached to play Victoria in Twilight, but she rejected it as it was "too small of a part".
Silent Hill's Jodelle Ferland was cast as the newly turned vampire, Bree Tanner.Other new cast members include Xavier Samuel as Riley,Jack Huston as Royce King II,Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria,Julia Jones as Leah Clearwater,and Boo Boo Stewart as Seth Clearwater.
Filming and post-production
Principal photography for Eclipse began on August 17, 2009, at Vancouver Film Studios.On August 29, photos captured Kristen Stewart, Billy Burke, and other principal actors, filming a scene with graduation caps and gowns.September 2 brought Xavier Samuel together with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson filming at a soundstage for scenes at Bella's house.Director David Slade stated that they filmed a scene with a tent on September 13.He also said on his Twitter account that they filmed a kiss between Jacob and Bella on September 17.Filming wrapped up on October 29, 2009, while post-production began in late November.Slade published multiple updates on his Twitter account proclaiming that editing was going well.He said the "story and the way [they] approached the film calls for a more realistic approach."In April 2010, it was revealed that reshoots to the film were needed. Both Slade and Stephenie Meyer were present at the shoot along with the three main stars.
In January 2010, an early draft of the film's script was leaked on the Internet.The script presumably belonged to star Jackson Rathbone, as his name was watermarked across each page.
Music
Main article: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (soundtrack)
The score for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse was composed by Howard Shore, who composed the scores for such films as The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Aviator.The film's soundtrack was released on June 8, 2010, by Atlantic Records in conjunction with music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas' Chop Shop label.The lead single from the soundtrack is "Neutron Star Collision (Love Is Forever)", performed by the British band Muse.
On May 11, 2010, MySpace announced that the full Eclipse soundtrack listing would be unveiled starting at 8 a.m. the following morning every half-hour, totaling six hours.
