Parade Interview With Robert Pattinson

Robert Pattinson turned millions of females around the world into frenzied fans when they saw him heat up the screen in Twilight as the heartthrob vampire Edward Cullen. And the love continues as Pattinson returns in New Moon.

Parade.com's Jeanne Wolf got up close and personal with the devilish and charming 23-year-old superstar. Pattinson shared his thoughts on being romantically challenged and getting a handle on becoming an overnight celebrity.

The love bug bites the deepest.

"What's interesting about this story is that it's supposed to be about this all-powerful immortal creature. But he's completely destroyed just by falling in love with this normal girl. He can't control anything afterwards. His entire life turns upside down. So I guess love can be more lethal than a vampire bite."

A new perspective on relationships.

"Getting involved in Twilight has definitely changed my mind about how people are kind of fanatical about wanting to have the perfect relationship. I had no idea that people were so desperate and felt like it was so unobtainable. They want to put this idea of unconditional devotion just so high above everything else, which is why they can't get enough of this story."

Advice to the lovelorn Bella.

"I keep wanting to tell people who think she should choose between Edward or Jacob that she should choose someone else. Jacob seems like the perfect viable option at the beginning of New Moon, but he turns out to be just as tortured as Edward is. So I guess Bella is just an unlucky girl."

Breaking up was hard to do.

"There was something weird about doing that scene where Edward tells Bella he's never going to see her again. Millions of fans see it as the ideal for a relationship. So breaking up the ideal relationship is pretty daunting. As for a breakup like that in my own life, I can't think of one."

And don't ask him about being romantic.

"I don't know, I can't think of a single romantic thing I've ever done. That's terrible. Wait. I put a flower in someone's locker when I was 15-years-old. It was a girl named Maria. She thought it was somebody else that had done it and the other guy was trying to take credit."

The scene where he almost took it all off.

"I felt pretty goofy stepping out into the sunlight in front of 2,000 people in a town square, ripping my clothes off. I was essentially doing a striptease. But here's the irony, it was also one of the moments where I've really felt closest to people's emotional attachment to Edward. There were so many extras in that scene who were Twilight fans who had flown in just to be a part of it. It was a moment where I've felt the whole weight of anticipation, and I guess responsibility as well, of being Edward, for all the people who were kind of so obsessed with the stories. It was quite uplifting and it was also very nerve-wracking."

Going head-to-head with Taylor Lautner.

"I didn't see Taylor until just a little bit before we started shooting. I had the same reaction as everybody else. It's like, 'Jeez, now I have to go to the gym.' Looking at Taylor's martial arts videos from when he was nine, I wouldn't really want to fight him for real unless maybe I had some kind of weapon. But in the story as it's written, I think it's actually a fact that Edward would win over Jacob. So I guess I can hold onto that for my ego."

The good news (and the bad) about becoming famous.

"It's a scary situation to be in, in a lot of ways. You really have to question yourself a lot more. Before Twilight, I did any movie that I could and I tried to make the best of it afterwards. But now you're expected to come and provide, not only economic viability at the box office, but also a smashing performance as well. When no one's watching your movies and you get a part, you can do whatever the hell you want. I don't have that luxury anymore."

What he has in common with Edward.

"I guess stubbornness in some ways about some things. Edward is pretty self-righteous, and I guess I am too. I get quite obsessive about things and possessive as well. I have very specific ideas about how I want to do my work and how I want to be perceived, to the point of ridiculousness sometimes. I don't listen to anyone else. That's why I don't have a publicist. I can't stand it if someone is trying to tell me to do something, even if it's probably a mistake sometimes. I'm like a control freak about it. I've never really struggled with anything until recently. I've got to stop being so self-depreciating because people are starting to believe it. Like, 'That guy is an idiot.'"