Taylor Lautner Won't Be Max Steel After All

Feb 26, 2010 - Taylor Lautner was at the center of a battle between rival toy companies and it looks like Hasbro has won out. Lautner, best known for playing the muscular, often shirtless werewolf Jacob Black in the Twilight film series, had signed on to star in Mattel's Max Steel movie and Hasbro's Stretch Armstrong. But that would be s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g the actor too far - and neither toy company wanted to share. Although Lautner was involved with Paramount's Max Steel first, New York Magazine broke the news that his camp opted out of that film in favor of giving his full attention to Stretch Armstrong.

Stretch Armstrong is set up at Universal Pictures, and you can bet they're looking to make the popular toy into a film franchise. With Lautner - easily one of the most popular young stars around today - onboard, they guarantee the film will stretch beyond the young male demographic to encompass teen females.

Lautner also recently dropped out of Northern Lights over 'casting issues.' All this Lautner casting news is certainly a case of striking while the iron's hot. It'll be interesting to see just what ends up happening with Stretch Armstrong and who they get to co-star with Lautner.

Of the three Twilight stars, Lautner's the only one signing up for more big franchise films. Both Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are opting for more dramatic, character-driven pieces than big budget studio movies. I can't wait to see, 10 years after the last Twilight film, who out of the three made the best choices and choose the right career path.