Kristen Reminisces About First 'Twilight' Interview Mentions Rob

“That was the first time you asked me about ‘Twilight’!” Kristen smiled when we caught up last week at the “Handkerchief” junket. “I remember the interview! … You were like ‘So, what’s up with this [movie]?’ ”

Actually, she brought up the film. “The movie is called ‘Twilight,’ ” she said during that January 2008 encounter. “Catherine Hardwicke is directing it in Washington. It’s based on a book that’s pretty popular [among] young adult, high school kids.

“The main character is, like, superhuman,” she said of Edward Cullen. “He’s a vampire, but with really [heightened powers]. He can run faster than a car can drive, and he’s super strong.”

At that point, Stewart added that she would be co-starring with some British actor named Robert Pattinson.

“Was Rob cast? I guess I don’t remember,” she explained. “That’s so weird.”

The result was the first time Kristen had ever spoken in public about the “Twilight” films, and when we ran a Movies Blog item a bit later, the MTV News team was shocked by the post’s record-setting traffic. That, in turn, gave birth to “Twilight” Tuesdays, the cast’s appearances at the MTV Movie Awards, the media picking up on the phenomenon later that year and — well, you know the rest of the story.

Of course, at the time, KStew also got herself in a bit of hot water, saying, “He throws me over his back [in one scene], right before he’s going to tell me that he’s a vampire, and then he runs over the treetops. And we’re going to be in real treetops; we’re not just going to CGI it. We actually get to go up there, and that’s what I’m stoked on.”

Months before the cameras rolled in Portland — and before anyone else was even cast — that simple “treetop” comment was enough to get fans of the “Twilight” books worked into a tizzy. Now, all this time later, those very same fans love the “Twilight” movies and have come to accept Kristen as their Bella. One of the reasons they love the actress is because she has such a playful relationship with them.

“Do we not, like, run up the tree and play around?” Stewart said about the controversy in our recent interview. “You just have to choose your words like crazy [when it comes to 'Twilight'].”