Taylor Lautner is having quite a year. Screaming girls worldwide will see him in the big screen again when The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 is released November 18, 2011. While he must feel thankful for this role that thrust him into the limelight, he’s also probably getting a little tired of being best known as a werewolf with awesome abs. That could all change in just a couple of days though. His first leading role movie, Abducted, will be released on September 23, 2011. Audiences, and more importantly studio executives, will be able to see if Taylor Lautner has what it takes to become the next Tom Cruise. Even if Abducted doesn’t come out on tops at the box office, a look at his life up this point shows that he has the determination and likeability to continue on.
Karate
Born on February 11, 1992 in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Dan and Deb Lautner, Taylor Lautner first gained fame not from acting but from karate. He started studying karate at 6-years-old and was already winning tournaments one year later. In 2003, he was ranked number 1 in the world for black belt open forms by North American Sport Karate Association (NASKA). In 2004, he won the Junior World Forms and Weapons Championship and three gold medals at the World Karate Association.
Acting
While Taylor Lautner's karate career was going well, he was also bitten by the acting bug. Despite being repeatedly turned down for roles, he and his family decided to take the plunge and moved to Los Angeles when he was 11-years-old so that he could pursue acting. Twilight fans actually have his old karate instructor to thank for encouraging the move. His first big break came when he starred in 2005's The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D. A role in Cheaper by the Dozen 2 followed soon after. While these two movies were enjoyed by many people, nothing could prepare him for what would come next.
Twilight
Millions of girls worldwide know Taylor Lautner for his role as Jacob Black, a member of the Quileute Native American tribe and rival of vampire Edward Cullen for Bella Swan's love. While Edward Cullen has the advantage of immortality, Taylor Lautner's Jacob Black is no ordinary boy himself; he's able to morph himself into a wolf. Released in 2008, Twilight earned almost $70 million in one weekend. Sequels New Moon and Eclipse continued the hysteria over Taylor Lautner. The fourth and fifth movies of the series will be released in November 2011 and November 2012.
Love Life Famous ex-girlfriends include Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift. Named one of People magazine's "100 Most Beautiful People" in their 2009 edition, Taylor Lautner probably doesn’t have any problems attracting the girls.
Abduction
Will Taylor Lautner’s teenage fans follow him and spend their money to watch a movie about a young man who must escape assassins while trying to figure out his true identity? Directed by John Singleton, who directed 2 Fast 2 Furious and Boyz n the Hood, and with a strong supporting cast of Sigourney Weaver, Alfred Molina and Maria Bello, the movie should appeal to males who love action films and older audiences.
