Taylor Lautner wowed fans with his physique in Twilight sequel “New Moon” and “Eclipse,” but in his new film, “Abduction,” he really gets to show off his martial arts skills. If you weren’t on Team Jacob before, you will be now. Lautner, 18, is busy shooting “Abduction” in Pittsburgh, Pa., where he’s causing quite a stir with local fans.
“There are hundreds of teenage girls camping out to meet him that have to be held back by barriers,” says co-star Isaacs. “Abduction” is a thriller that focuses on a youth (Lautner) who discovers the parents who raised him aren’t his real folks, a revelation that triggers events and leaves him running for his life.
The movie really puts Taylor’s skils to the test running, jumping and fighting. And he just doesn’t look good, he’s super-athletic in the movie, showcasing the martial-arts and gymnastic skills he learned on his way to becoming a junior world karate champ. “He’s a martial arts prodigy,” co-star Jason Isaacs told Metro yesterday (July 25). “Even at 11 he looked like [movie star and martial arts champion] Bruce Lee. He’s a phenomenon; he’s like a gold-medal gymnast.”
Well, gold medal may be a bit of an exaggeration, but Issacs, 47, got a chance to see Lautner’s skills first hand. He was initially apprehensive about doing fight scenes against an expert like Lautner. “He’s been doing karate since he was six!” says Jason. “I’ve done 10 kickboxing lessons. “Hollywood decided he is the latest action hero, apparently, and I’m there in this film to make him look even more muscular. And I’ll do that.”
This isn’t the first time a castmate was amazed by Lautner’s super-athleticism. In June, Eclipse co-star Elizabeth Reaser (“Esme Cullen”) raved that Taylor was the fittest person she had ever seen. Taylor, who famously gained 30 pounds of rippling muscle for “Twilight: New Moon” and “Eclipse,” reveals he did fight training and boxing for the intense action scenes in “Abduction.” “I’ve been training,” Taylor said. “I did boxing training for a couple months. Now I’m into the fight training, motorcycle. ‘ll do a little swimming training. It’s all-around. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
The action and stuntwork is right up Lautner’s alley. Taylor, a junior-world karate champ at age 12, says he would love to be action hero like fictional superspy Jason Bourne (played by Matt Damon). “I love action, but most important is the story,” he says. “And the story behind this action thriller ['Abduction'] is amazing. We got [director] John Singleton behind us. I’m so thankful we’re getting a cast like that.”
Later this year, Taylor will begin shooting “Breaking Dawn,” the fourth installment in the “Twilight” saga. Breaking Dawn will be broken up into two separate films, with Part 1 due out in November 2011.
