Exclusive: Tyson Houseman talks 'The Twilight Saga: Eclipse'

Tyson Houseman, who portrays "Quil" in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, took time to discuss with a select few fansites his experience in being a part of one of the world's biggest film franchises.

Q: So even though your character was introduced in New Moon, you really didn’t get to jump into the action until Eclipse. Did you kind of feel a little bit like Quil – that you were left out of the fun? And was it worth the wait getting to participate more in Eclipse?

Tyson: Yeah, there were actually a lot of similarities between me and the character. In New Moon, like you said, I only had like one day of shooting on set, and so every time I would see the other wolf guys they would always talk about all the fun times they were having on set, and stuff like that. And I kinda felt like I was missing out on that. And so I was really excited for Eclipse when we started that one. I was a wolf and a member of the wolf pack. So I got to hang out with the guys again and do all the stuff with them and that was really similar to what the character Quil was doing, too.

Q: You really didn’t have to do the whole bulk up fitness routine, and I was just wondering how challenging it was for you to catch up with the rest of the cast members in the fitness regimen for the film?

Tyson: Well, it wasn’t that hard for me, because even though I wasn’t actually a wolf in New Moon, they still put me in the wolf pack training. So I was used to all the grueling work outs with the guys, and I kind of made it a goal for myself that by the time Eclipse started filming, that I was gonna get into really good physical shape so that I could keep up with the other guys and I think I did that pretty well.

Q: We heard about a lot of the male bonding that went on before New Moon. Did you guys get together and do some fun stuff during the filming of Eclipse?

Tyson: Yeah, we had to do another series of workouts together before the film just to stay fit, and that was really fun. It was a great way for us to bond together. We went through a lot of pain together, and we always went to (dinner) after something like that. So it was a really great time. It was really good having friends on the set.

Q: Imprinting is a huge part of the book. Do we see that addressed at all in Eclipse, and if so, how do you feel about your character having to go through with that?

Tyson: Well, I mean, I was a little worried at first because it can come off as a little bit creepy to someone who doesn’t actually know what the whole idea of imprinting means, but they do a really good job of explaining it, and introducing it, and everything like that. And it’s portrayed really well in Eclipse so that you actually understand what it really is and so that people aren’t going to be leaving saying, “Oh that’s creepy. He’s in love with a two year old.”

Q: How was your experience working with Chris Weitz on New Moon to then transitioning to work with David Slade on Eclispe. Did you enjoy it? Was there one you preferred over the other?

Tyson: Well I just thought it was a really great opportunity that I was able to work with two different directors for the same project, for the same series. I thought that was really fun. Chris – he was a really nice guy. He was really cheery. He was always supportive and he was really funny. I feel like I got along really well with him. He was like there for you. And, um, David – it was really cool working with David, too, because he had a different style. He was more meticulous about it. He was more in depth and intricate at trying to get all the little details right which I was really happy about because he stuck really well to the series and to the book.

Q: Lots of members of the wolfpack have talked about getting a wolfpack tattoo when all filming is said and done, and some people say, “Yes, we’re all doing it,” and some people say, “No, I’m not doing it.” What’s your feeling on the tattoo?

Tyson: Well, originally I was thinking that I just didn’t want to do it. Like I understood why they would want to do it, but I wasn’t. But lately Kiowa has been pressuring me, like all the time, to get the tattoo, so, I dunno. I think I may end up having to do it.

Q: You talked about how filming Eclipse was physically hard to do, but was there anything that you had a hard time with and really fought through as far as the acting is concerned in filming Eclispe?

Tyson: There were a few parts of it that seemed a little bit tough, but I just tried my hardest to try to have fun with it as much as I could. Like I said, it was great having the support of the other wolfpack guys there just cause they were such good friends, and everyone else on set, too, were friendly and welcoming and nice, and we’re all just really, really high energy. So that really contributed to any challenges that I would have acting through a scene or something like that. And it was really great having the director there to help, too.

Q: A lot of people always ask about crazy fan experiences, and I just wanted to hear about your best fan experience.

Tyson: Well there’s always the ones about like the little girls who are too afraid to come up to you because they think you’re actually a wolf. I’ve had that happen to me a few times. It’s pretty cute and they’re just terrified. Other than that, I had this woman who was like 70 or 80 years old. She was a tiny, old lady, and she was the biggest fan ever. It was really cool.

Q: What responsibility do you feel to the fans of the series to get your character spot on right? And did that add to any of the choices that you made?

Tyson: Well it definitely - it added – there was a lot of heaviness to it, like there was pressure to get it right. But I felt like, you know, the directors and producers and casting directors picked me for a reason and they liked what I had, so I just sort of trusted that I had the look of the character and I could fit into the abilities of the characters easily enough just by – you know, I studied the books as hard as I could, and I got everything right with the character to the best of my abilities. And I just have to trust that the fans will like that.

Q: What was your most exciting memory from shooting?

Tyson: Well there was this one time where, we were shooting this scene where all of the wolf pack guys, we just basically had to run across a field really quickly. And we were bare feet and it was really, really muddy and really wet in the field. And every time we shot a take, someone would fall on their butt while we were running. And it was really funny for me because every time we were about to shoot, Alex would try to pep talk us and be like, “Okay guys, this is what you have to do. You have to run on the balls of your feet.” Or, “You have to stay on your toes.” Because he’s a dancer. He’s been dancing for a really long time. And it was really funny because every time he would try to give us pointers, we would do a take and then he would be the one who would fall on his butt. It was really funny.

Q: The fans have a question for you. They want to know what advice you have for them, mostly for your Native American fans, on how they can break into acting.

Tyson: Basically, the only advice I can give really is to just do the work. It involves a lot of hard work and a lot of people think that it’s an easy job. Like, there are some easy aspects to it, but there’s also a lot of really, really hard stuff to do. Like when you go to an audition, you have to know it like the back of your hand. Like you have to be – you have to put in effort in order to get something out of it. I guess that kind of applies to anything, but that’s really what I can say. You gotta put in the effort to get something.

Q: On the DVD commentary for New Moon, Chris Weitz kind of made and off-hand comment about your audition process. And he said that you just kind of rolled on the street and saw a big line and asked what was going on. Can you tell us a little bit more about how you came to audition for New Moon?

Tyson: Well, I didn’t even know that it was going to be for New Moon, actually. They just said the audition was for a major motion picture and they weren’t releasing the name of the movie that it was for. But when I should up to see what was going on, there was a line up of 4 or 5 block long filled with Twilight fans, with like books and t-shirts and everything. So I kinda figured it out then that it was probably going to be for New Moon. And they told me that they were looking for anyone who had Native American background and who was between the ages of 15 and 25. And I was like, well I fit that description, so I’ll try this up. And I basically just tried it for the experience because I really didn’t expect to get anything out of it, but I ended up doing the audition really well, and I got a call back after that. And a week later they called me saying I got the part.

Q: We’ve had a lot of requests for your Twitter! Is it something you would consider in the future, being part of the Twitter world?

Tyson: Well, yeah, it is. I mean I don’t have anything right now. Anything that’s out there right now is a fake one, even if they say that they’re not fake, or anything like that. But I’m the works of building a website for myself right now – a fan site. And once I get that running, I’ll be able to make a Facebook and a Twitter and a MySpace and things like that, just so that fans can connect there. [Tyson has since joined Twitter - @TysonHouseman]

Q: How you would compare the fight scenes between New Moon and what we’re going to see in Eclipse without, you know, revealing too much about the movie?

Tyson: Well I know that the director, David Slade, he’s really good at that. Another movie he worked on, 30 Days of Night, was definitely a really gritty, dark, action movie. And so I think you can expect him to bring a lot of that into play. Like it’s gonna be a lot darker and it’s gonna be a lot grittier. And I think with the amount of action scenes that are going to be in it, it’s going to be way more guy-friendly. I mean, there’s an entire war that happens in this movie. So it will be really exciting to see.

Q: Eclipse seems to be one of the, if not the, most favorite book across the board in the fandom. How do you think that the screen play and the final film is going to appeal to the fans’ expectations for Eclipse?

Tyson: Well I know me, personally, Eclipse was my favorite book, too. And when I read the script for Eclipse and when I was doing work on Eclipse, I was really proud. I felt like it stuck really true to it and it translated really well from the book. So I think the fans are going to like it a lot.

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