Interview: 'Breaking Dawn's' Chaske Spencer Dishes On His Role Sam, Moments On Set And Working With Taylor Lautner

November 18, 2011 - 3:58pm
By: Stephanie Webber

It's that time Twihards! The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 1 has hit theaters after waiting so patiently since the previous Eclipse film. It’s a time for Edward and Bella wedding bells and when Taylor gets feistier than usual to persuade Bella to not change her whole life. Breaking Dawn is here and most of you are grabbing extra coffee throughout the day because of lining up for its midnight showing early this morning.

Ology has their Team Jacob and Team Edwards, but luckily for us, we got to chat with the leader of the wolf pack for all the filming details. Actor Chaske Spencer plays Sam Uley in the series and let us in on his audition process, what the cast did on their Vancouver downtime and on some of his favorite moments on set. He even talks a little Rob and Kristen and if he had to choose—his favorite Cullen! Check it out.
OLOGY: Hey Chaske! How are you?

CHASKE SPENCER: Great, thanks.

OLOGY: Breaking Dawn: Part 1 is finally here! How does it feel knowing you started off playing Dracula in a play back in New York and then you ended up in a vampire series?
CHASKE: Awesome! [Laughs] I don’t really think about it too much. I guess it was just supposed to be that way, I don’t know. It was off Broadway but I’m pretty happy the way things turned out.
OLOGY: You started off in New Moon. When did you know it was such a phenomenon?
CHASKE: Seeing pictures of it in USA Today and seeing the press release was knowing it was going to be a big deal. I didn't know much about Twilight before that. I had seen the posters around New York but it’s not really my demographic. [Laughs] I didn't rush out to see it but I was on a plane ride over from New York to Vancouver and luckily they were playing it…I didn't start in Twilight so I kind of just got on this train that was already out of control and tried to hold on tight. [Laughs]
OLOGY: What drew you to the character Sam? How was the audition process?
CHASKE: It was really weird because I never auditioned for something like this before. First off, there was no script. It was just the book. They gave us excerpts of the book. I auditioned for Paul and Jared. Pretty much those characters and then I didn't hear back for a bit. Then I heard they wanted me for Sam. I was really surprised because I didn't know who Sam was, but I talked to some people who were really into the book and they told me it was a really good character…I just started doing research on leaders, mainly military. I’m nothing like Sam. [Laughs]
OLOGY: I can’t believe that! What was the last day on set like for all of you? Part 1 is now showing but you also are in post-production for the final installment.
CHASKE: We were all up all night and it wasn't a big sad goodbye for me. It was just that I was tired. [Laughs] I was tired and we had been shooting—and no pun intended but we saw breaking dawn—and the sun was coming up and we had to get the shots. There wasn't a big send off or anything.
OLOGY: How was the wrap party?
CHASKE: Everyone was having a good time and being in the moment. I thought the party was good. Metaphorically speaking, twilight was a good ride. It was one good party.
OLOGY: What about a favorite storyline from the series?
CHASKE: Probably Leah Clearwater. I liked her arc and her story from Eclipse. I like what Stephenie [Meyers] did there.
OLOGY: Did you read the books beforehand or did you just jump right in?
CHASKE: No, I had not read the books before filming. After I got the part I did read the books. I didn't read Breaking Dawn though until a few weeks before filming started.
OLOGY: Which was your favorite?
CHASKE: My favorite would probably be Eclipse. I really liked Eclipse. I liked the back story of the wolf pack and how the vampires came to be. I really enjoyed reading that and informing me on a lot of stuff. I really liked Eclipse.
OLOGY: Do you and the rest of the wolf pack hang and work out together?
CHASKE: They hired us a trainer and we ended up working out in New Moon and Eclipse but in between that I used my own trainer…he helped me keep in shape. I think Taylor had been working out a year before that so he already had his own thing going on but the rest of us—they threw us in like a wolf camp. I had a good time. We all got more muscle than we had before. [Laughs] I really had a good time doing the workouts.
OLOGY: Well it definitely seemed like you all had the opportunity to hang out because of filming in Vancouver. What did you and the cast do on your downtime?
CHASKE: I sometimes did things on my own and kind of veered off to discover Vancouver. I didn't hang out with too many people besides the wolf guys. [Laughs] I just kept to myself….The cast—we went out to dinner. Going to dinner was awesome. We went to a few clubs once in awhile but mainly we were just so busy working out. [Laughs]
OLOGY: Word is you’re of course Team Jacob! Who would be your favorite vampire?
CHASKE: Probably I’d say Carlisle. I like his character the best.
OLOGY: Was there still some rivalry between the wolf and vampire cast members though? [Laughs]
CHAKE: Oh, yeah! There was definitely some banter going on back and forth. A lot of it was Jackson Rathbone [Jasper] and Alex Meraz [Paul]. They would sometimes throw a comment back and forth to one another but it was all in good fun.
OLOGY: Well, what’s it like seeing yourself on the screen as a wolf? It seems like it would be weird!
CHASKE: It was cool! I mean it really was cool, and who doesn't want to be a wolf? Whether it’s to be supernatural, a superhero or werewolf or vampire. It was cool. I was at the premiere at New Moon and seeing my wolf crew and Alex Meraz looked at me and just gave me this weird smile. [Laughs] It was just very surreal. We just kind of looked at each other. It was something else. [Laughs]
OLOGY: So who are you closest to on set?
CHASKE: Probably Julia Jones [Leah] or Alex Meraz. Mainly the wolf guys; we worked out together. Tinsel Korey [Emily] and all of them too because we just filmed a lot of scenes together. Oh my God, I’m looking at birthday cards right now. It says, ‘Wish you a Happy Birthday, with more fun than humanly possible,’ and it has Rob [Pattinson], Kristen [Stewart] and Taylor on here.
OLOGY: That’s hilarious! They are all over the place.
CHASKE: Yeah! [Laughs] I’m in Walmart right now.
OLOGY:[Laughs] Taylor’s definitely broken out because of the films. Was there any talk about that while filming?
CHASKE: Taylor’s got a pretty focused head on his shoulders. He’s a really god guy. We chat from time to time but it’s never about that. It’s just mainly when we’re working on a scene or something. We don’t take each other too seriously. He’s just a normal kid, a normal young man in a very interesting situation.
OLOGY: And of course there’s Rob and Kristen. Did cast members try to keep as mum as possible when it came to talking about that relationship?
CHASKE: I don’t know what you’re talking about, what do you mean?
OLOGY: [Laughs} Stop! It just came out a few weeks ago. She told a newspaper about her British boyfriend.
CHASKE: I don’t know. I would not know. [Laughs] I wouldn't know. You would have to ask them.
OLOGY: Okay, fine! [Laughs] Well do you get recognized a lot? Do you have any funny fan stories?
CHASKE: I’m standing in Walmart right now and there’s a Twilight poster right there and no one seems to know who I am. [Laughs] So that kind of sums it up. Not really, but every once in awhile. Around L.A. I will but I’m really surprised if I do.
OLOGY: What are some memories you’ll definitely be taking away with you now that you've wrapped both movies?
CHASKE: The cliff-diving scene--we had a good time on that. We had a blast on that. That would definitely be a memory I’d take with me.
OLOGY: If you could describe your experience from these films in one sentence, what would it be?
CHASKE: It was a hell of a wave and I hope to catch another one.
OLOGY: Love that. And besides acting, what are three other passions you have? What are your Ologies?
CHASKE: Photography. I’m really into photography. Traveling, camping and hiking. I like to spend my time outdoors and get away from everything. I like silence. I like it when it’s quiet. I like documentaries. I’d watch those over regular films. And I just love working on movies. I like being away on set and working. Its for me. Its fun, its kind of hard to do but something about when you’re just hanging out with a bunch of the crew and you get to know them. You’re like family. I enjoy the nomadic lifestyle.
OLOGY: That's great. Can't wait to see the film! Thank you so much Chaske. Loved talking with you!

CHASKE: Thank you so much! Bye.

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Chaske was quite sly with that Rob and Kristen, but he definitely fulfilled our love for the series!

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn- Part 1 opens in theatres today, Nov. 18 in theatres. I’d say go check it out but you twihards probably caught the midnight showing. For you others, the Edward and Bella wedding awaits.