Jacob Black: Who He Is, Who Plays Him and What Happens to Him

Jacob Black is a member of the Quileute tribe and a friend of Bella Swan, and he is played by Taylor Lautner in every Twilight film. He first appears in Twilight (2008), directed by Catherine Hardwicke, where Lautner is billed tenth in a cast led by Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. From The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), directed by Chris Weitz, he becomes one of the three leads, and Lautner is billed third in that film and in every sequel.

The films write Jacob as the warm, easy option in a story that is otherwise heavy with danger. Bella is grieving and withdrawn in New Moon, and she grows close to him while they repair motorbikes together. That being said, he is also a character with a secret. In New Moon he and others in his tribe turn out to be werewolves, whose natural enemies are vampires, which puts him on the opposite side of the line from Edward Cullen and the Cullen family.

If you are searching for the name behind the part, the answer is Taylor Lautner, who plays Jacob across all five films with no recasting. The credits list the character as Jacob Black. For the full list of players, see the twilight cast page, or browse every twilight characters profile.

Jacob is in love with Bella Swan through New Moon and Eclipse, and from Breaking Dawn Part 1 onward his bond is with her daughter Renesmee. The two stages are different in kind, so it helps to take them one at a time.

Bella Swan. Bella Swan is the center of his story for three films. He is her closest friend after Edward leaves, then a rival for her heart in Eclipse, and finally a protector who refuses to let his own pack harm her child. She never stops loving Edward, and she tells Jacob so plainly at the end of Eclipse.

Edward Cullen. Edward Cullen is his rival and, eventually, his ally. The wolves and the Cullens set aside their old hostility and fight the newborn army together in Eclipse. The tension returns in Breaking Dawn Part 1, when the pack wants to destroy the baby that Bella and Edward are expecting.

Renesmee. What did Jacob Black do to Renesmee? He bonded with her. In Breaking Dawn Part 1 he believes the baby is dead and wants to kill Bella, but he bonds with the newborn Renesmee instead, and that bond stops the wolves from harming her. In Breaking Dawn Part 2 the film treats it as a settled, lifelong tie, and Bella accepts it. Do Jacob and Renesmee get married? The films do not show a wedding. They end with Alice's vision of a grown Renesmee happily together with Jacob.

Seth, Leah and the pack. Seth and Leah leave the pack with Jacob in Breaking Dawn Part 1, which shows that his loyalty to Bella outweighs the pack's orders.

The Cullens. Carlisle, Alice and the rest of the family are first his enemies by nature, then his comrades in battle. See carlisle cullen and alice cullen for how those relationships look from the other side.

In my opinion, Jacob's best scenes are the quiet ones, and the films are at their warmest when he is fixing a motorbike rather than fighting. Here are the five I would point a newcomer to.

The motorbike garage in New Moon. Bella is hollowed out, and Jacob gives her something to do with her hands. It is the clearest reason the audience likes him, and it makes his later pulling away from her hurt more.

The cliff rescue in New Moon. Bella jumps for the thrill and nearly drowns, and Jacob pulls her out. It could be argued that this single scene sets off the trip to Italy, since Alice's mistaken vision comes straight from it.

The tent in Eclipse. During a freezing night before the battle, Bella and Jacob talk, and she kisses him. Perhaps surprisingly, the scene ends up being about why she chooses Edward, which gives the love triangle an honest answer.

Leaving the pack in Breaking Dawn Part 1. Jacob walks away from the pack's leader and takes Seth and Leah with him. It is the moment he stops being Bella's admirer and becomes her protector.

Meeting Renesmee. He wants to kill Bella and ends up bonded to a newborn. Paradoxically, in my opinion, it is the scene that turns him from a threat into Renesmee's protector, and the rest of Breaking Dawn Part 2 depends on it.

If you want to see them in context, start with the twilight movies in order guide, and for how the screen versions differ from Stephenie Meyer's novels, read twilight books vs movies.