Twilight: What Different Vampire Eye Colors Mean (2024)

The Twilight franchise had its very own unique version of vampires, and among their most defining physical characteristics was the differing colors of the Twilight vampire eyes — here’s why they changed and what each color of vampire eye means in Twilight. Starting with Stephanie Meyer's book series of the same name, the story at the heart of Twilight features a long timeline that, although the focus is on the present, has a backstory going back 1500 years. Throughout that history, characters' eye color changes, based on their current lifestyle and choices.

When Bella meets Edward, he has black eyes, which days later change to gold, and she even asks him if he’s wearing contacts. In the world of Twilight, when vampires have black eyes it means they need to feed. A vampire’s eyes will go from their natural color, which depends on their diet, to black, darkening more the thirstier they get. In about two weeks, if the vampire doesn’t feed, their vampire eyes will go completely black. When they reach that point, Twilight's vampires become very dangerous, as they will do anything to get any type of blood. Giving different eye colors to vampires depending on their lifestyles (and how hungry they are) certainly helps differentiate them and their intentions, while also adding to the already peculiar mythology of Twilight’s vampires.

What Yellow Eyes Mean In Twilight

Twilight vampire eyes that are golden are those who have chosen not to drink human blood and instead only eat animal blood, calling themselves “vegetarians." The Cullen family refer to themselves this way and make a point to steer clear of human blood, even if the scent of someone's blood overwhelms them, as it does for Jasper when Bella cuts her finger in the first movie. This change in diet makes them more capable of handling themselves around humans. Even so, if it's exposed, human blood is extra alluring to Twilight's vampires, and it can still be very hard for them to resist.

Carlisle's Olympic Coven isn't the only group of vampires that are vegetarians in The Twilight Saga. The Denali Coven is also made up of vegetarians, and are some of the closest allies of the Cullen family. They even refer to themselves as "cousins." Like Carlisle, when someone joins their family, they are expected to become the vampire version of a vegetarian. Led by Tanya after the death of the vampire who turned her, the group comes to Bella and Edward's wedding, and their Twilight vampire eye color is gold, just like the Cullen family. When Laurent is a member of the Denali Coven, he tries to hide his straying from the vegetarian diet, but he is said to still sneak human blood once in a while.

What Red Eyes Mean In Twilight

Twilight vampire eyes are not only gold though since very few vampires in The Twilight Saga are vegetarians. In fact, the Denali and Olympic Covens are the only known vegetarians. The other main vampire eye color in Twilight is red.

After Bella’s transformation in Breaking Dawn her eyes become red rather than gold — a moment fans had been waiting for since she shared her desire of becoming a vampire. Vampires with red eyes are typically those who feed off human blood, such as Laurent, Aro, and the rest of the Volturi. Nearly all the Twilight vampire eyes are red outside the Cullen family.

However, vampires can also have red eyes when they’re newborns. This is a result of the human blood still present in them, as was the case for Bella in Breaking Dawn - Part 2. Those with red eyes are usually irrational, hot-headed, and travel in small groups. These characteristics differ from the more sociable golden-eyed Twilight vampires usually found living in covens.

Was Establishing Twilight Vampire Eye Lore Worth It For The Actors?

In order for the vampire eyes in Twilight to match those of the books' variation, the actors obviously had to wear contact lenses. The choice, however, wasn't worth it to the actors. Reportedly, Kristen Stewart (Bella) and Robert Pattinson (Edward) have both remarked that the contact lenses are uncomfortable and hurt quite a bit.

Stewart said of her Breaking Dawn contact lenses during filming (viaMTV News), "That is one thing I can't wait to say goodbye to. They just kill you. [They give you] dead face." Actors that have had to wear contacts for their roles have made similar statements, so much so that even Harry Potter's Daniel Radcliffe wasn't required to wear green contacts to portray Harry's famously green eyes. The contact lenses weren't the only thing that caused discomfort to the Twilight actors, however.

The cast of Twilight had to endure a lot to make the movie successful, both on set and while promoting the franchise, and achieving different-colored vampire eyes very much came at the expense of their personal comfort.