It’s been over a decade since the first Twilight movie premiered. This eventful teen vampire drama has recently resurfaced among fans. They are finding themselves pondering over the character Jasper Hale’s background asking themselves: Was he a Confederate soldier?
Twilight overview
It’s very unlikely to find an adult who isn’t familiar with the Twilight phenomenon. The Twilight movie saga spans over five flicks that are based on a series of books by Stephenie Meyer.
The story follows the hardships and romantic love between vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and human Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart). Beyond their relationship, the movies and books also explore the lives and relationships of Edward’s siblings and family.
This includes the quiet and pensive Jasper Hale who has recently been a hot topic in conversation as fans remember that his origin story dates back to him being a general soldier in the Confederate Army— a militia dedicated to upholding the enslavement of Black Americans.
What are fans saying?
“Jasper” has been trending on Twitter recently. People are criticizing fans for continuing to allow the character to be romanticized. Others are digging up the book author’s past where she reportedly stated that a Black actor could only play villains in the movie.
One Twitter user tweeted, “The fact that every single Cullen had a sad heartwrenching backstory and they just gave Jasper racism…”
Another shared that the character was likely canonically a racist. They theorized, “The fact that Jasper from Twilight was a Confederate soldier has come up again, which means he definitely said the n-word.”
Even a Nicki Minaj “stan account” weighed in. They said, “Not these yt girls romanticizing Jasper who fought in the Confederate Army! And the Cullens were just cool with it.”
The abbreviation “yt” translates to white.
Sharing a screenshot of the trending topic on Twitter, Christy tweeted, “At least the trending topic thing gets his name right, all these people calling him Jasper Cullen making me angy.”
It appears as though fans are feeling upset and cheated by the reminder that the mysterious Jasper Hale from Twilight has such a problematic backstory. Many are hurt that Meyer didn’t “just make him a Union soldier.”
Strange racial dynamics were played in the Twilight series, even in the author’s use of Indigenous tribes and their land. Few fans are even pointing out that the woman who made Jasper into a vampire was depicted as “Hispanic” and “evil.”
The Twilight movies can be streamed on Showtime and Amazon Prime.