We Like to Watch: Kellan Lutz of ‘New Moon’

When Kellan Lutz found himself locked in a death grip with a diaper-clad baby chimpanzee on a photo shoot, he knew he had stumbled into the right business. “He was pretty strong, but I still came out victorious,” says the 24-year-old actor, best known for playing Emmett Cullen, the bulky big brother to Robert Pattinson’s Edward, in the much-obsessed-over Twilight films.

('’)

In order to get into fighting shape for the combat-heavy Eclipse, the third film in the series, Lutz spent much of the summer getting his body into full beat-down mode. The aspiring action hero even tussled with the movie’s producers over performing his own stunts. “I want to be the guy who actually gets shot and gets his leg broken but keeps on fighting,” Lutz insists. “I want that to be my face on the screen.” (Lutz admits that his character in next year’s A Nightmare On Elm Street remake won’t keep fighting—it’s hard to make it past Freddy Krueger alive.)

But lest audiences think Lutz is all brawn and no brains, they should know that he reads his beloved Kindle between takes. They should also know he gave up a scholarship in chemical engineering to pursue a lucrative modeling career—only to give up his modeling career to pursue an even more lucrative film career. If it gets more lucrative, watch out: Lutz compiles potential inventions in a notebook and cautions, madscientist-style, “If I had millions of dollars I could do something with chemical compounds, some really intense stuff.”

Shirt by Theory Jeans by H&M.

Photography by Hellin Kay. Styling by Jodi Leesley. Grooming: Cori Bardo @ Celestine. Location Bardot, Los Angeles. Shirt by Theory Jeans by H&M.