February 3

Site of the Month
I know this isn't a "new" website so to speak, but I don't think people really know how much extra information Stephenie has on her website. So February's site of the month goes to none other than the women who started the Twilight phenomenon, StephenieMeyer.com

Here are a few things I think you should check out.

FAQ's
Each book has FAQ's. You learn a lot about some of the unanswered questions in the books.

Outtake's
Everybook has outtakes. These are parts of the book that were not able to be published. These are great and help fill in the blanks.

Midnight Sun
For those who may not have known, Midnight Sun is Edward's version of Twilight. If you haven't read it, click here.

New Moon News
“Twilight” sequel “New Moon” has landed its first overseas sale, to Italy, where the Chris Weitz-helmed vampire romancer is partly set.

Eagle Pictures, which released “Twilight” locally, announced on Tuesday that it has reupped with Summit Entertainment for the sequel, which will shoot in the ancient Tuscan city of Volterra for two weeks in May.

In Stephenie Meyer’s bestselling “New Moon,” Volterra is the town where the powerful Volturi vampire coven resides.Shooting on the pic begins in Vancouver in March, with “Twilight” stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart reprising their roles.

Eagle Pictures, which is owned by Tunisian mogul Tarak Ben Ammar and has close ties with Summit, announced that “New Moon” will be released in Italy on Nov. 20, day-and-date with its Stateside release.

“Twilight” took $15 million in Italy, making it the country’s ninth highest grosser in 2008, after “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” and ahead of Matteo Garrone’s “Gomorrah.”

Source

New Moon and Vanessa Hudgens
Melissa speaks - on Vanessa Hudgens, Chris Weitz, Leah Clearwater, and more.

“I’m not sure about [final] casting but I had heard Vanessa Hudgens was going up for the part of Leah [Clearwater, a werewolf],” screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg, who wrote both films, explained to PEOPLE at the 61st Annual Directors Guild of America Awards in Los Angeles Saturday night. “But at the moment, the part of Leah doesn’t happen until the third movie.”

Rosenberg also offered a few other insider tidbits about the progress of New Moon. “Well, you know Taylor Lautner will be back as Jacob Black. I can tell you the original cast will all be coming back. They’re on set right now, in Vancouver! They’re all up there prepping the movie to start shooting very soon.”

As for other changes in the next installment, Rosenberg said she expected new director Chris Weitz – who replaced the first film’s director, Catherine Hardwicke – to put his expertise and imprint on the second film.

“Chris Weitz directed The Golden Compass, which was a beautiful-looking film,” Rosenberg said. “And I think it’s wonderful we have someone who has worked with CGI animals … that will be a big part of New Moon. I’m delighted we have someone who’s so expert at that.”

Source

Summit and Lionsgate Merger?
Reports that Summit -- the studio behind the Twilight movie (pictured) -- and Lionsgate, the makers of the Saw franchise, are discussing a merger have been greatly exaggerated, EW has learned. Following a report yesterday on Sharon Waxman's new website The Wrap, which revealed that the two indie studios are in fact having conversations about a corporate marriage, a source tells EW that those discussions actually occurred before Summit took the $37 million Twilight and turned it into a $340 million worldwide franchise. Now that they've got a real hit on their hands, Summit is going it alone for the time being, with the Dakota Fanning-starrer Push releasing on Friday, and New Moon, the studio's Twilight sequel, scheduled for a Nov. 20 bow.

However, with the economic conditions being as they are, everyone in Hollywood is talking about ways to enhance their business strategically while simultaneously reducing overhead, so it's certainly not out of the question that we'll see some kind of changes taking place at various studios in coming months. We'll just have to wait and see how it all shakes out.

Source

Movie Totals
Total US Gross $187,066,718
International Gross $160,000,000
Total $347,066,718