Taylor Lautner

Taylor Daniel Lautner (born February 11, 1992) is an American actor who most notably portrays Jacob Black, the best friend of Twilight ' s heroine, Bella Swan. Jacob is a human boy who turns into a werewolf in the film New Moon, where he becomes one of the main characters of the series. In 2005, Lautner became well-known for playing the role of "Sharkboy" in The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl, as well as the Elliot Murtaugh in Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

Early life
Lautner was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan to parents, Deborah, and Dan Lautner in February of 1992. He is of French, Dutch, and German descent. When asked about playing Native American character Jacob Black in the 2008 film, Twilight, he revealed that he has some Native ancestry, specifically Ottawa and Potawatomi.

At the young age of six, Lautner became interested and soon started studying Karate, training at Fabiano's Karate School in Holland, Michigan. A year later he was winning tournaments, and was also invited to train with seven-time world karate champion Mike Chat. By the time he was eight he was asked to represent the United States of America in the "twelve years and under division" in the World Karate Association, where he became the "Junior World Forms and Weapons Champion". He won three gold medals.

Lautner's acting career began after his martial arts instructor persuaded him to audition for a part in a Burger King advertisement. Despite his unsuccessful attempt to make it into the commercial, he enjoyed the experience so much that decided to pursue a career in acting. Not long after that, he and his family were traveling back-and-forth from their home in Michigan to California for Lautner to audition for acting roles on a regular basis. When Lautner was ten, his family relocated to Los Angeles to allow him to pursue acting full-time.

He continued to flourish in the martial arts circuit; in 2003, at only eleven years old, he was ranked number one in the world for NASKA's Black Belt Open Forms, Musical Weapons, Traditional Weapons and Traditional Forms and, by the age of twelve, he won Junior World Championships. However, at the age of 13 he gave up martial arts to focus on his acting.

Career
Lautner began acting in 2001, appearing in the made-for-television film Shadow Fury. He subsequently had roles on the series Summerland, The Bernie Mac Show, and My Wife and Kids.He has also had a recurring role on Danny Phantom as YoungBlood. He is perhaps most famous for his starring role as Sharkboy in The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D, a film that showcased his martial arts skills. Lautner has stated that while he has been trying to succeed in his acting career, he also wants to finish high school.

He has had small roles in a number of other television shows and movies, including The Nick & Jessica Variety Hour. In addition to television, Taylor has been very successful in voice-over work. He has recorded episodes of What's New, Scooby-Doo? and He's a Bully, Charlie Brown. Taylor has also been as booked a series regular of a pilot presentation called Which Way Is Up?, in addition to voicing the character of Silas in the animated series Silas and Brittany.

His big break came in 2005 when, at the age of thirteen, Taylor won the role of Shark Boy in the Robert Rodriguez film The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D. He spent three months on location in Austin, Texas filming. Within months, he successfully auditioned to play Eliot, the son of the Bakers' rivals, in Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

Lautner was cast as Jacob Black in the movie adaptation of the book Twilight by Stephenie Meyer.

At an appearance at a Breaking Dawn midnight release party at a Barnes & Noble in his hometown in Michigan, Lautner revealed that he would be in a new show with Christian Slater starting in October 2008. The show, called My Own Worst Enemy, was described by Taylor as a mix between Alias and 24. However, the show was cancelled by NBC in November.

Director Chris Weitz considered replacing Lautner in the role of Jacob Black for the film The Twilight Saga: New Moon, due to large physical changes that occur in the character following Twilight. However, in January 2009 it was announced that Lautner would continue to play the character of Jacob in New Moon. In 2010, he will be featured in the film Valentine's Day alongside Taylor Swift.

Personal life
Lautner has a younger sister named Makena. He was a junior at Valencia High School (Santa Clarita, California) for the 2008-09 school year, but tested out of high school and is taking college classes. In his spare time, Lautner loves playing football and baseball, and he is a fan of the Texas Longhorns and Michigan Wolverines. He was a part of the Hart Baseball Program in the Los Angeles area, where he played center field and second base. He also participated in the "LA Hip Kids", a hip-hop dance group, and "Hot Shots", a performing jazz dance group.