Robert Pattinson: 'Twilight's' Rising Star

June 14, 2010— -- Anyone familiar with the "Twilight" film series has most certainly heard of its smoldering male lead, actor Robert Pattinson. The last few years, audiences have witnessed the transformation of Pattinson from little-known British actor into an A-list teen heartthrob and emerging force to be reckoned with in Hollywood.

"I mean, it's crazy. It's not what people tell you when people warn you of being an actor," he said recently in an interview with "Nightline." "If and when I have children, [and] they ask if they want to be actors, I'm like 'Yeah, it's great. You don't have to do anything. Everything goes right.'"

That would appear to be true for the 24-year-old Pattinson, who has catapulted to Hollywood fame thanks to his lead role in the "Twilight" film series, based on the popular books by Stephenie Meyer. Pattinson plays vampire Edward Cullen, who is eternally devoted to mere mortal and high schooler Bella, played by actress Kristen Stewart.

The major difference in the series' third film, "Eclipse," which hits theaters at the end of the month, was his interaction with a lot of different characters, Pattinson said.

Whereas the series' first two films, "Twilight" and "New Moon," used the relationship between Pattinson's and Stewart's characters to show the sensitive side of the undead ("They were just me and Bella kind of bonding basically," he said), Eclipse affords Pattinson's character the chance to combine his wooing with a little whoop-ass.

"There are a lot of fight scenes, and the love triangle between me, Bella -- Kristen's character -- and Jacob kind of comes to a head," he said.

Despite the more physical nature of the third film, Pattinson's and Stewart's characters mostly refrain from getting physical themselves. Although Bella pines for release, old-fashioned Edward insists on marriage before he's willing to go all the way.