Bella Swan: Who She Is and Who Plays Her in Twilight

Bella Swan is a seventeen year old who leaves sunny Phoenix, Arizona, to live with her father Charlie, the police chief of the rainy town of Forks, Washington. Kristen Stewart plays her in all five films and is billed first every time. Bella first appears in twilight 2008, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and she stays at the center of every sequel, so audiences meet the vampires and werewolves through her eyes.

At school she notices the Cullens, a group of unusually pale adopted siblings, and one of them, Edward, behaves strangely around her before saving her from a sliding van in the parking lot. That is the hook of the whole saga: a newcomer who only wants to fit in discovers that the most interesting family in town is hiding something, and she is determined to find out what.

Why is she so special to the story? In my opinion, it is partly that she stays human and curious while everyone around her is extraordinary, and in the final film she turns out to have a gift of her own, a mental shield that she learns to stretch to protect other people from vampire powers.

Her circle reaches well beyond the Cullen family, and the wolves and the Volturi shape her story in every sequel.

Bella's most important relationships are with edward cullen, jacob black, her father charlie swan and her daughter renesmee. The later films add the biggest turns in each of these bonds.

Edward Cullen, her husband. Robert Pattinson plays Edward, and the pair fall in love in the first film. Edward leaves her in New Moon to keep her safe, proposes in Eclipse and marries her in Breaking Dawn Part 1 in a forest ceremony. So, when people search for Bella Swan's husband, the answer is Edward.

Jacob Black, the friend who loved her. Taylor Lautner plays Jacob. In New Moon he repairs motorbikes with Bella and becomes her anchor after Edward leaves. In Eclipse he admits his feelings and kisses her, and he accepts, with pain, that she has chosen Edward. In Breaking Dawn Part 1 he breaks with his pack to protect her, then bonds with her newborn daughter.

Charlie Swan, her father. Billy Burke plays Charlie, who worries openly when Bella sinks into depression in New Moon and who begins to notice that something is strange about the family in Breaking Dawn Part 2.

Renesmee, her daughter. Mackenzie Foy plays Renesmee in the final film, and Bella's whole goal in the last act is keeping her safe.

Bella also has bonds across the Cullen household: Alice (Ashley Greene) sees Bella's cliff jump in a vision and brings her to Volterra, Jasper (Jackson Rathbone) is the reason for the New Moon birthday incident, and Rosalie (Nikki Reed) guards her during the pregnancy. In the first film Edward takes her to meet his adoptive family, led by Carlisle and Esme, although some of the family worry that she could expose their secret. Read more on the cullen family page. Her enemies are victoria, who hunts her for revenge, and Aro and the Volturi, who demand that she be changed.

In my opinion, Bella's best moments are the ones where she acts rather than waits, and perhaps that is why they stand out in a saga that sometimes leaves her in the middle of other people's arguments.

1. The ballet studio in Twilight (2008). Bella goes to the studio believing her mother has been kidnapped, and she walks straight into James's trap to save her. It could be argued that the whole saga is set by this choice.

2. The rush to Volterra in New Moon. After Alice wrongly tells Edward that Bella is dead, Bella reaches him just before he exposes himself to the sun in public. It is a rare moment where the human girl rescues the vampire, and the Italian setting makes it feel like a proper set piece.

3. The tent in Eclipse. On a freezing night Bella talks with Jacob and kisses him, and the scene shows the cost of her decision more honestly than any speech. It is the kind of awkward, human scene that makes her choice of Edward feel earned rather than automatic.

4. Waking up in Breaking Dawn Part 1. After the violent birth, Bella wakes with red eyes as a vampire. I think it works as the payoff of her decision to be changed, the one she first told Edward she wanted in New Moon.

5. The meadow in Breaking Dawn Part 2. Bella lowers her shield so Edward can see her memories, a small gesture after the big fight. If you are new to the saga, this is the scene that explains why fans stay loyal to her.

To see how these films stack up, visit our twilight movies ranked page, or start from the twilight movies in order guide.