Josh Peck reveals that he was considered to play the romantic vampire Edward Cullen in the Stephenie Meyer adaptation Twilight, a role which eventually went to Robert Pattinson. Peck first rose to fame on Nickelodeon after appearing on the sketch show The Amanda Show and co-starring with Drake Bell on the sitcom Drake and Josh. By the time Twilight premiered in 2008, Peck had also held roles in ER, Mean Creek, and Ice Age: The Meltdown.
Per Variety, Peck made a surprising revelation on an episode of his podcast Good Guys featuring guest Taylor Lautner. Peck told Lautner (who played Jacob Black in Twilight) that he was almost also a part of the Twilight cast. After auditioning for the role of Edward, Peck was told that “it’s down to you and three guys,” a prospect that Peck found “impossible,” joking that “I hadn’t even had a tummy tuck yet.” Read his full quote below:
I remember it’s like 2006? [2007]? They’re like, “Audition for this movie, Twilight, it’s based on a book and it’s going to be great.” So I send in my tape, for Edward. A month later, I’m with my manager and he goes, “It’s down to you and three guys, you’re close.” I’m like, “Really?” I hadn’t even had a tummy tuck yet. I’m like, “There’s no way. He’s got to be so shirtless, it’s not going to happen.” Spoiler alert—didn’t get it… But I remember then seeing R-Patz playing this part I’m like, “In what f—ing world were they like, okay here’s what we’re thinking: Chris Hemsworth or Stanley Tucci?” Like what the f–k? Impossible! Impossible! So we almost worked together.
Josh Peck’s Career Could Have Been Very Different
Needless to say, Josh Peck’s career would have transformed entirely if he had played Twilight‘s Edward Cullen. Indeed, this is what happened to Robert Pattinson himself, whose only previous major role was playing Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Although it took him some time to shake off being typecast as Edward, Pattinson eventually settled into a career switching between more arthouse fare such as The Lighthouse and huge blockbusters like The Batman, in which he played the title role.
If Peck had been given the role of Edward, his transition into a leading man would have occurred a lot sooner than it actually did. In the aftermath of the end of Drake and Josh, the star took a variety of sidekick roles as he transitioned into adulthood. This included playing supporting characters in projects like the horror movie ATM and the 2012 remake of Red Dawn.
He hadn’t returned to major leading roles until more recently, when he joined the main cast of the John Stamos sitcom Grandfathered in 2015. After that, he took on more traditional leading and love interest roles in projects including Disney+’s Turner & Hooch and Hulu’s How I Met Your Father in addition to being part of the vast Oppenheimer cast. Twilight would likely have increased Peck’s offers for this type of role in the late 2000s, though he may not yet have honed his approach as a mature actor to properly embrace them like he has today.
