In 2005, a quiet high school girl moved to rainy Forks, Washington and met a mysterious, mesmerizing classmate—and YA literature was never quite the same since. This fall, Twilight celebrates its 20th anniversary, and fans old and new have reason to celebrate. The film adaptations are returning to theaters for a limited engagement, collector editions are hitting shelves, and the pull of that fated love story feels as strong as ever.
Back to the Big Screen (for just one Night—or Five)
The anniversary is being marked with a rare cinematic treat: all five films of the Twilight Saga will return to the big screen for a limited run between October 29 and November 2, 2025. Each night will feature one installment of the saga, beginning with Twilight and culminating in Breaking Dawn – Part 2. To make the event even more special, audiences will be treated to behind-the-scenes content, roundtable interviews with Stephenie Meyer, and never-before-shared reflections from the films’ producers. For longtime fans, it’s a chance to relive the midnight premiere energy of the 2000s. For newcomers, it’s an invitation to step into Forks on the big screen for the very first time.
The Dream That Sparked It All—And the Domino Effect
While the movies brought Twilight to pop culture heights, the story itself began with something far more personal: a dream. On June 2, 2003, Stephenie Meyer woke up from a vivid vision of a human girl and a vampire boy in a meadow, discussing the dangers of falling in love. That dream became Chapter 13, “Confessions,” and quickly expanded into the novel that would launch a global phenomenon. But the origins of Twilight reach even further back in an unexpected “domino effect” that ties the saga, indirectly, to the events of September 11, 2001.
In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, Gerard Way formed the band My Chemical Romance, determined to create music that captured the era’s grief, anxiety, and raw emotional turbulence. Meyer became a fan of the band, and their themes of hopelessness and angst heavily influenced the emotional atmosphere of her writing. Without that influence, Bella and Edward’s tortured romance might have carried an entirely different tone. And, in turn, Twilight’s unprecedented success directly inspired E.L. James to write the fanfiction that would later evolve into Fifty Shades of Grey.
In other words, without the cultural shockwave of 9/11, there may never have been My Chemical Romance—without MCR, the emotional atmosphere that fueled Meyer’s writing might have been different—and without Twilight, Fifty Shades might never have existed. It’s a strange but fascinating butterfly effect that shows how pop culture can ripple outward in unexpected ways.
Of course, Meyer’s literary inspirations also shaped the series. Each Twilight installment has a classic novel in its DNA: Pride and Prejudice in Twilight, Romeo & Juliet in New Moon, Wuthering Heights in Eclipse, and The Merchant of Venice and A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Breaking Dawn. Combined with the moody soundtrack of Muse, Coldplay, and My Chemical Romance, Meyer created a supernatural love story that spoke to teenage longing with both gothic weight and universal vulnerability.
3 Books to Read If You Loved Twilight
Two decades later, Twilight still holds a permanent spot on the YA shelf, but if you’ve already reread Bella and Edward’s story a dozen times, you might be craving something new that carries the same sense of danger, romance, and obsession. Luckily, plenty of modern fantasy and paranormal series have picked up the torch, delivering the emotional highs and swoon-worthy tension that first drew readers to Forks. Here are three series that Twilight fans will want to sink their teeth into.
If you’re looking for something that carries the same dangerous allure as Twilight, Holly Black’s The Folk of the Air series is the place to start. The trilogy (The Cruel Prince, The Wicked King, The Queen of Nothing) plunges readers into a world of dark fairy politics, treachery, and enemies-to-lovers romance. Jude Duarte, a mortal girl living in the High Court of Faerie, is constantly caught between power, survival, and her complicated feelings for Prince Cardan. The series mirrors Twilight’s pull with its intoxicating blend of forbidden desire and high-stakes drama—only with a sharper, more cunning edge.
For fans who crave sprawling fantasy worlds with layered romances, Sarah J. Maas has you covered. Both A Court of Thorns and Roses and Throne of Glass series offer rich, immersive universes filled with powerful heroines, morally complex love interests, and the kind of emotional intensity that keeps you reading late into the night. Like Meyer’s saga, Maas’s books thrive on themes of transformation and resilience, but they raise the stakes with epic battles, political intrigue, and characters whose relationships evolve as dramatically as the worlds they inhabit.
And if you’re searching for something that feels like a direct successor to Twilight, look no further than Tracy Wolff’s Crave series. Set in a mysterious boarding school in Alaska, the books follow Grace, a girl who discovers a hidden world of supernatural creatures—and, of course, a brooding love interest with secrets of his own. With its mix of romance, danger, and paranormal drama, Crave delivers that same addictive quality that made Twilight impossible to put down, while carving out its own modern identity in the genre.
Why Twilight Still Resonates (Two Decades Later)
Twenty years later, Twilight is more than a guilty pleasure—it’s a cultural landmark. From inspiring the resurgence of paranormal romance to fueling the rise of fanfiction in mainstream publishing, its influence has spread far beyond Forks. The rerelease of the films offers a communal way to revisit the saga, but the books still stand on their own: a testament to how a dream, a band, and a moment in history can ripple outward to change the literary world forever.