"New Moon" not so hot in Madrid

Spain's audience stays home for premiere of new "Twilight" series film.

Clare Richardson (New York University)November 19, 2009 13:12Updated May 30, 2010 12:14

From the "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" premiere in Madrid, Nov. 12, 2009. (Sergio Perez/Reuters)

MADRID, Spain — No fangs, no shrieking boy-crazy teenagers, and not a drop of blood to spare.

Opening day was overwhelmingly disappointing.

"Twilight," the biting and lovesick youth romance set in the damp and dreary Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, was so popular in Spain two years ago that distributors rewarded fans by premiering its sequel, "New Moon," two days before it opened in the U.S.

Given that films are usually delayed several months before making their way across the Atlantic into Spanish theaters, "New Moon's" early release was highly unusual.

But while the United States waits for Friday, Nov. 20, with baited breath for its official release, Spaniards seem to have squandered their two-day head start on the saga of Edward Cullen the brooding vampire and his 17-year-old human love interest, Bella Swan, in Forks, Wash.

Last week, slews of screaming fans welcomed "New Moon" stars Robert Pattinson (Edward), Kristen Stewart (Bella), Taylor Lautner (Jacob) and director Chris Weitz in Madrid for a promotional event.

But when the clock struck 12 midnight Wednesday, and a sliver of moon appeared in Madrid's dark sky, the streets were deserted for the official release. Although distributors could have showed the movie at midnight, the first showings weren't until 4 p.m. the next afternoon. And when 4 p.m. rolled around, the crowds were no larger than those for a normal, run-of-the-mill film.

Quite a letdown compared to the red-carpet premiere that took place yesterday in Westwood, Calif., two days before the official release.

"In case you weren’t one of the thousands of screaming fans camping out for hours on the streets of Los Angeles for a glimpse of the 'New Moon' cast, here’s a rundown of what you missed: celebrities, vampires, werewolves, rock stars, a few thousand-plus of the most devoted Twilighters and Twi-hards in the world and the ever-present, ear-piercing sounds of unadulterated fan adoration," reported FearNet.

"New Moon's" Spanish premiere lacked all the theatrics of the six Harry Potter movies, where Hermione look-likes, wands and lightning bolt scars were out in force over the years.