Is Taylor a victim of the Twilight curse?

As Taylor Lautner’s Abduction failed to set the box office alight in the US in its opening weekend, Hollywood is awash with whispers of a ‘Twilight curse’, which has seen the three lead actors in the vampire franchise fail to replicate the big screen success of the Jacob-Bella-Edward love triangle.

With 17-year-old Taylor’s first foray into leading man territory making Dh40 million at the US box office – Dh50 million short of what studio bigwigs had hoped for – Abduction came in fourth place in the ratings, behind Lion King 3D, Moneyball and Dolphin Tale.

And it was a similar story for Robert Pattinson’s first big non-Edward Cullen role, with Remember Me not making much of an impact, and Kristen Stewart’s Joan Jett biopic, The Runaways, an unprecedented flop.

“Taylor was paid about [Dh27 million] for his first leading-man role,” spilled a Tinseltown source. “Abduction wasn’t supposed to get beaten by Dolphin Tale!” Adding, “But among Taylor’s fan base, largely teenage girls, he definitely scored well, which will mean big DVD sales.”