Twilight’s Carlisle Cullen – Biography, History, & Character Information

• Name: Carlisle Cullen
• Type: Vampire
• Special Ability: None

Carlisle Cullen, born Stregoni Benefici, is Esme’s husband and the adoptive father of Edward, Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper. Carlisle whose physical age is twenty-three and he is described as looking like a model. He has blond hair, stands at 6’2” and is slender but muscular. Carlisle theorizes that when a human is turned into a vampire, they will have an enhanced ability from their previous life. So according to his theory Carlisle believes he brought compassion from his human life. Carlisle has had centuries to perfect his medicinal talents, therefore making him an excellent doctor. Unlike most vampires, he is not at all tempted by the scent of human blood, due to the over 300 years he has spent holding back his temptations. While Carlisle has no special ability, he is able to have serious self-control and can hardly smell the scent of human blood while he is working. Throughout the Twilight saga, Carlisle works as a doctor, acting as the coven leader and offering medical advice and help whenever Bella is in need.

Early History

Carlisle Cullen was born in 1640’s and was the son of an Anglican pastor in London, England during a time of religious upheaval. His father and other pastors would hunt down creatures such as witches, werewolves, and vampires, and often mistook humans for them. As his father aged, Carlisle was put in charge. One night, he was attacked by a vampire and left to die on the streets. Knowing he would not be accepted by society, he hid himself and silently went through the painful transformation, emerging as a vampire. Horrified, he tried various methods of killing himself, but nothing worked. One night, he could endure hunger no longer and fed on a group of passing deer. Subsequently realizing that he did not have to live off humans, he set out to perfect his resistance to blood lust and become a doctor. For a short time, Carlisle lived with the Volturi, though he eventually left and traveled to the New World.

While treating patients with the Spanish Influenza, he met a woman who begged him to do whatever he could to save her son, Edward. Out of loneliness, Carlisle transformed him into a vampire and Edward became his companion. In 1921, Carlisle moved to Wisconsin where he treated Esme after a failed suicide attempt brought on by the loss of her infant son. Carlisle felt compelled to save her life and subsequently fell in love with her. Carlisle then transformed Rosalie Hale, a young woman who was almost killed by her drunken fiancé and his friends in Rochester, New York, and left in the street to die. While hunting, Rosalie later found a young man named Emmett who had been mauled by a bear, and carried him over 100 miles to Carlisle. Carlisle then changed Emmett, since Rosalie was unwilling to do it herself for fear of blood lust overwhelming her. After Carlisle changed Emmett, Carlisle and his family moved to Hoquiam, Washington, where they made a treaty with the Quileute Native American tribe. The treaty stated that the Quileutes would leave the Cullens alone if the Cullen family did not bite any humans or trespass on their land. The Cullens agreed to this treaty, and lived in relative peace until they had to move on. Between the Cullen’s first and second stay in Forks, Alice and Jasper joined his coven as well, having found Carlisle on their own.

Actor Biography

• Name: Peter Facinelli
• Nick Name(s): None
• Date of Birth: November 26th 1973
• Height: 5’10”
• Hair: Brunette
• Eye Color: Blue

Fun Fact: According to Kellan Lutz, he and Peter were always pranking the cast and crew of Twilight

Hometown(s): Ozone Park, Queens, New York; California

Career: Peter Facinelli studied acting at the Atlantic Theater Company Acting School in New York City; his teachers there included William H. Macy, Felicity Huffman, Giancarlo Esposito, and Camryn Manheim. He has done numerous small projects and others that have gone on to do very well. Well known films he has done include Riding in the Car with Boys, The Scorpion King, Can’t Hardly Wait, Twilight, and the upcoming New Moon. He has also appeared in HBO’s Six Feet Under, FOX’s Fastlane, and FX’s Damages. Undeniably his appearance as Carlisle Cullen in Twilight will be the catalyst for new hits for Peter Fancinelli.

About Them: Facinelli grew up in a large Italian family in Ozone Park, Queens, New York, as the son of Italian immigrants Bruna, a homemaker, and Peter Facinelli, Sr., a waiter. Facinelli met his future wife, Jennie Garth, on the set of An Unfinished Affair, a 1996 made-for-TV movie. They married on January 20, 2001. He and Garth have three daughters together: Luca Bella (June 22, 1997), Lola Ray (December 6, 2002) and Fiona Eve (September 30, 2006). Peter was not interested in playing Dr. Carlisle Cullen in the film Twilight until after he had read the book. His favorite scene to film in Twilight was the vampire baseball scene. He played baseball in high school and saw it as “reliving the glory days”. Robert Redford was Peter’s inspiration when playing Carlisle Cullen in Twilight. Peter is a vegetarian (ironic at all?). He coaches his daughters’ soccer and baseball teams and while shooting Hollow Man 2 in Vancouver, he would fly back each weekend to catch the games. He owns a ’62 Thunderbird convertible and takes Kung Fu lessons.

Quick Quote: “I like to surprise myself and try to push myself to play roles that are far from who I am. That’s the fun for me.”