Taylor Swift was turned down for a part in Twilight: New Moon because it would’ve been ‘too distracting’

Taylor Swift was apparently rejected from a role as an extra in Twilight: New Moon as the director thought her appearance would steal focus from the rest of the film.

At the time of The Twilight Saga’s prominence, the singer was a known fan of the books and films (a “Twi-hard”, as supporters often called themselves).

In a new interview, Chris Weitz, who directed the second Twilight film, revealed that he reluctantly had to deny her the part of an extra in the background.

“Taylor Swift was a huge Twi-hard, and Taylor Swift and I had the same agent at the time and he said, ‘Taylor would like to be in this movie – not because of you, but she's a Twi-hard!’” Weitz said, on the podcast The Twilight Effect with Ashley Greene and Melanie Howe.

“‘She would be someone at the cafeteria, or the diner or whatever, but she just wants to be in this movie.’”

Although it wouldn’t have been a major role for the “All Too Well” singer, Weitz believed that the surprise appearance of a major celebrity would distract from the rest of the film. As a result, he turned down the proposition.

“The hardest thing for me was to be like, the moment that Taylor Swift walks onto the screen, for about five minutes, nobody is going to be able to process anything,” he continued.

“I kick myself for it too, because – I was like, wow, I could've been hanging out with Taylor Swift.”

Despite losing out on the opportunity to start a friendship with the musician, Weitz said that he ultimately stands by his decision for the sake of the project.

He explained: “She must have been like, ‘who is this jerk?’ But sometimes you make decisions thinking this is for the best of the film.”

New Moon went on to make £11.68m at the box office on its opening weekend in the UK and was one of the most successful films of 2009.