Last weekend, crazed tweenage fans stampeded into theaters everywhere to watch "New Moon" -- the latest movie in the "Twilight" series. The film wound up earning a whopping $143 million in its first weekend -- the biggest opening ever for a fall release. In honor of this achievement, we have put together a gallery of the franchise's breakout stars and how they got their start in Hollywood.

WireImageKRISTEN STEWART -- Bella Swan
Age: 19
Years in Show Business: 10

Kristen Stewart reprises her role as Bella Swan, the love interest of both sparkly vampires and hunky werewolves in "New Moon." Stewart started her acting career with bit parts like "The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas" before landing a major part in 2002's "Panic Room" as Jodie Foster's diabetic daughter. Aside from her "Twilight" duties, Stewart will also play Joan Jett in the upcoming bio-pic "The Runaways."

Photo by Warner Bros. Pictures/Everett Collection, Getty ImagesROBERT PATTINSON -- Edward Cullen
Age: 23
Years in Show Business: 5

Robert Pattinson has been the romantic fixation of seemingly every tween girl in the country, thanks to his turn as Edward Cullen, cinema's dreamiest vampire. Though Pattinson's first appearance was in a deleted scene in Mira Nair's "Vanity Fair" (which can be seen on DVD), his role as Cedric Diggory in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" put him on the map. Though Pattinson has a smaller role in "New Moon," you will see a lot more of him in next June's "Eclipse."

WireImageTAYLOR LAUTNER -- Jacob Black
Age: 17
Years in Show Business: 9

As was breathlessly reported all over the Internet, Taylor almost did not get a chance to reprise his role of Jacob Black. The producers were worried that the baby-faced actor didn't have enough brawn for the physically demanding part in "New Moon." But Lautner hit the gym and bulked up 30 pounds worth of muscle, all of which is on display in the movie. Ironically, Taylor first gained the attention of Tinseltown with his physical prowess -- he won the Junior World Championship in karate at the tender age of eleven, which led to his first film role in 2005's "The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D."

WireImageDAKOTA FANNING -- Jane
Age: 15
Years in Show Business: 9

Unlike most of her young castmates, Dakota Fanning was a bone-fide star well before appearing in the "Twilight" franchise. She first garnered attention for her role opposite Sean Penn in 2001's "I Am Sam" at the tender age of eight. Her performance was so strong that she was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award, the youngest actress ever to get a nod. Since then, she has become one of the hottest child stars in Hollywood, starring in "Man on Fire," "War of the Worlds," and "Charlotte's Web." You can see her next in "Eclipse" and opposite Kristen Stewart again in "The Runaways."

WireImageCAMERON BRIGHT -- Alec
Age: 16
Years in Show Business: 9

Bright plays Alec, a highly-ranked guard in the Volturi coven who has super psychic skills. Like his co-star and on-screen twin sister Dakota Fanning, Bright had plenty of credits before becoming a vampire. He starred opposite Nicole Kidman in 2004's "Birth" when he was ten years old. On the strength of that role, he landed parts in "Thank You for Smoking," "Godsend," and played the mutant Leech in "X-Men: The Last Stand."

WireImageMICHAEL SHEEN -- Aro
Age: 40
Years in Show Business: 16

Michael Sheen might have been nominated for a slew of acting awards and was even made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, but "Twilight" fans might consider his performance as Aro, the alpha vampire of the Volturi, as the apex of his career. Of course, Sheen is no stranger to playing otherworldly characters: his first major movie role was as the Lycan leader Lucian in the "Underworld" series.

WireImageASHLEY GREENE -- Alice Cullen
Age: 22
Years in Show Business: 4

Ashley Greene continues her role as Bella Swan's vampire confidant Alice Cullen in "New Moon." Prior to her big break in the "Twilight" franchise, she had only appeared on a few TV shows like "Punk'd" and "Crossing Jordan." But now, she's a hot commodity in Hollywood -- she will appear in five upcoming projects this year and will return as Alice in "Eclipse."

WireImageNIKKI REED -- Rosalie Hale
Age: 21
Years in Show Business: 6

Nikki Reed plays what has to be one of the most daunting roles in the biz -- Rosalie Hale is described in the book as the most beautiful woman in the world. Fans freaked out, arguing that the brunette Reed couldn't possible play the blonde Hale. But Reed has been through a lot worse than a little Internet sniping. She got her start in the business as the actor and co-writer of "Thirteen," which was directed by "Twilight" helmer Catherine Hardwicke. The movie -- about a teen who spirals into drug abuse -- was reportedly drawn directly from Reed's own troubled youth.

WireImageKELLAN LUTZ -- Emmett Cullen
Age: 24
Years in Show Business: 10

Kellan Lutz plays Edward Cullen's burly big brother Emmett, who always enjoys razzing Bella for her klutziness. He first garnered attention from Tinseltown by being an Abercrombie & Fitch model. Soon, Lutz was appearing in TV shows like "Six Feet Under" and "CSI:NY" and movies like "Stick It" and "Prom Night." Watch for him next year as he gets tormented by Freddy Krueger in the re-boot of "A Nightmare on Elm Street."

WireImageANNA KENDRICK - Jessica Stanley
Age: 24
Years in Show Business: 11

Anna Kendrick plays Jessica, Bella's only normal friend. While Jessica is jealous of all the attention Mike Newton is giving to Bella, Anna has no reason to be envious of all the attention the press is heaping on Kristen Stewart. While previous to "Twilight" Kendrick only appeared in a couple of movies like "Rocket Science," she stars opposite George Clooney in next month's "Up In The Air," which is already getting some major Oscar buzz.

WireImageBILLY BURKE -- Charlie Swan
Age: 42
Years in Show Business: 19

Burke is what they call in Hollywood, a "working actor." He has appeared in dozens of TV shows from "Deep Space Nine" to "Gilmore Girls." He even had a run on the second season of "24" as the family-murdering Gary Matheson before landing the plum role of Charlie Swan, Bella's divorced father.

WireImagePETER FACINELLI -- Carlisle Cullen
Age: 35
Years in Show Business: 14

Facinelli plays Carlisle, the compassionate captain of the Cullen clan. He started out on the other end of the high school movie spectrum, breaking through as Mike, the popular jock, in 1998's "Can't Hardly Wait." Considering that Facinelli hasn't seemed to age at all in the last decade, maybe he is actually a vampire.