Robert Pattinson tells what he really thinks about 'Twilight,' 'Remember Me' and fan frenzy

Robert Pattinson at the New York City press junket for "Remember Me"

Robert Pattinson slowly takes off his jacket while you’re sitting with him in a hotel room. As he makes himself more comfortable, he flashes his famous grin and runs his fingers through his hair. That’s a scenario that I’m sure many of Pattinson’s countless fans would love to see themselves in at any given moment. The aforementioned situation happened to me, but it's not what you may think, because it happened during an interview when I sat down with Pattinson at the New York City press junket for his emotional drama "Remember Me."  It was a roundtable interview with some other journalists in the room, and I can assure you that none of us let out any of the ear-piercing screams that he’s used to getting every time fans see him in public.

The truth is that Pattinson is still navigating the rollercoaster ride that his meteoric rise to fame has taken him on since he became an international celebrity for starring in the "Twilight" movies. And he seems to be handling it all with a down-to-earth and charming sense of humor. But life beyond "Twilight" is inevitable for Pattinson, and part of that journey involves doing films like "Remember Me," a relationship film in which he plays a restless New York University student named Tyler Hawkins, who falls for fellow NYU student Ally Craig (played by Emilie de Ravin) during the year 2001.

If you read or watch celebrity media on a regular basis, then you probably know about how fans and paparazzi swarmed around the "Remember Me" set while filming took place on location in New York City in the summer of 2009. Near-riots broke out among the crowds, there were lots of hyperventilating and screaming females, and extra security was needed to manage the curious gawkers, over-zealous fans and intrusive photographers. During our interview, Pattinson talked openly about how he’s dealing with that kind of fame; his plans for writing new music; and what kind of life he wants now that he has what a lot of entertainers aspire to have.

Emilie de Ravin and Robert Pattinson in "Remember Me"

What surprised you about being an executive producer on "Remember Me"?

I wasn't a proper producer. I only came on at the end. I always liked what ["Remember Me" director] Allen [Coulter] and ["Remember Me" producer] Nick [Osborne's] idea for the whole movie was, and at the end, I didn't want it to be messed about with, by the studio or by whomever — whatever I could do to help protect that. I did little contributions and things, not as a producer. I felt really bad [for not contributing more], but I thought, "I can’t take my name off it …"

What led you to do "Remember Me"?

I read it just after "Twilight," in the summer, and there was just something about it. I liked the way it didn't fit into any formulaic structure, and it didn't seem like a teen movie. I really liked Allen and Nick. The period in between the second and third "Twilight" films was only two months, and you can't shoot that much stuff. It wasn’t that big of a film. It seemed like the perfect meat to put in there. And it was also an ensemble piece. Everyone’s character was pretty well-written. That was the main reason for doing it.

Robert Pattinson in "Remember Me"

Do you agree with Tyler Hawkins’ world view?

I don't think Tyler really had a world view. That's kind of what I liked. He's sort of rebelling against nothing. He doesn't have any particular desires. No one's taking anything from him. It's almost the reason why he wants to rebel, because there's nothing to rebel against.

I felt relatively similar to him in a lot of ways, just being desire-less, especially when I first read it. I wasn't doing anything when I first read it. I guess I could rate that as quite boring. I wasn’t doing anything so that’s why I can relate. [He laughs.] I don’t know if I subscribe to his world view.

There’s something about him where he thinks there’s more to every moment in your life. I guess I’ve always kind of thought like that. It kind of angers you that you’re not feeling something enough or being a wide enough scope. I’ve always kind of felt a bit like that, I think.

"Remember Me" director Allen Coulter and "Remember Me" screenwriter Will Fetters say that it can be hard for young people to play young characters and see beyond that age. How were you able to do that for "Remember Me"? And how were you able to see yourself as Tyler?

Maybe it's bad, but I think the only way to make anything truthful — in my head, anyway — is to try and relate as much of it as you can to yourself. You don’t have to become yourself; it’s in the performance. I think I related tons of it to how I thought I felt about stuff. I was saying to people before I started shooting that it's the closest to myself, and I'm trying to play myself in it. I don’t know. I didn’t really think specially about things that make [Tyler] think that [way].

Robert Pattinson in "Remember Me"

What do you like most about filming a movie in New York City?

It's the fantasy idea of living in the East Village. It's the kind of life I would have wanted to have if I was a student. It's a very active culture. Even the extras in New York, everybody's got an opinion about everything … I saw in the ["Remember Me"] press release that New York’s a character in the movie. It is kind of true, and you can feel that. You feel like you’re in a movie when you’re walking down the street.

How much of that authentic New York City life did you get to experience yourself?

My sister used to live here, for five years. And I'll be honest, I experienced a lot more of New York then. I was kind of stuck in a hotel room a lot of time [while I was in New York filming "Remember Me"].

Robert Pattinson in "How to Be"

What can people expect from you musically in the future? You played a musician in "How to Be." Do you see yourself doing another musically inclined movie?

Yeah, I'd really like to. I've been talking to people about stuff for ages, about various different things. It's quite difficult to do. I think it's a bit risky as well.

How has your songwriting process changed for you in recent years?

I used to write a lot by just doing gigs, and just turning up to open mics with two lines of a song, and the pressure would force you to make something up. And I can't really do that anymore. [He laughs.] That was my main process of writing songs: get songs that are totally uninformed by self-consciousness. When I sit down and try to write some lyrics, it just looks like rubbish.

All of the stuff I’d done before ["Twilight" fame] was based on that: as much stream of consciousness you can get. I can't function with two things at the same time. I don't even listen to music when I'm doing [films]. I think after doing another movie after this movie I’m doing now ["Bel Ami"], then I'll try and write some music, hopefully at the end of the year.

Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart in "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse"

Have they asked you to do any more songs for the "Twilight" movies?

No. They never ask me anything!

How do you handle filming a new "Twilight" film every year?

I guess it’s quite difficult. We went straight from "Remember Me" to the third "Twilight" film, which is obviously very different form "Remember Me," and there was no prep time in between.

How was it working with Emilie de Ravin and dealing with the challenge of the fans outside on the "Remember Me" set?

Emilie was really understanding about all that stuff. She had a bunch of people come out for her as well, for "Lost." Once they realized we were both there, it became double craziness. She was always cool about the crowds and stuff.

She was in a similar position to me, in a lot of ways: She’d been working something for ages and ages. She’d had done a film for a while. Both of us, I don't know if we were trying to break away from anything, but it's kind of a relief after you’ve done the same thing for ages. You want to give everything to this one project, and she really did.

Robert Pattinson and Emilie de Ravin in "Remember Me"

Was it hard for you to concentrate with all the distractions of the fans and paparazzi around the "Remember Me" set?

Just at the beginning. It's strange, in New York, you can't shut down the whole street to the public. It is weird. You've got 40 people taking photos on the other side of the street, and there's nothing you can do.

And if you don’t do what they say, there are moments where they’re like … I remember we were shooting by NYU, and I went to the bathroom once, and when I came back, the [fans and paparazzi] were like [he says in a bratty voice], "If he goes away again, we’re not going to let you film anything for the whole day!" [He laughs.] Jesus Christ! It’s like being in hell!

That’s a lot to handle. Did you ever have any moments where you just lost your temper?

There was one moment I remember getting really, really, really furious. I was just doing something and someone came up to me. Imagine going over there and trying to hit someone and missing, in front of 40 people with cameras. They dispersed from my anger.

Robert Pattinson at the New York City premiere of "Remember Me"

How do you feel about your career right now? Are you happy? Are the acting opportunities you’re getting worth all the craziness and the fame?

It’s different in America than it is in England. Shooting in England now is kind of normal. No one [paparazzi and fans] is ever really there, which is really odd. I haven’t [shot a film in England] for two-and-a-half years. It’s a different type of discipline. You have to figure out how to block things out.

It's annoying not being able to meet people, thinking that someone's going to sell something or Twitter things. You need just to be a person, just to be able to talk to someone in a normal way. You see all these actors holing themselves up and not doing anything ever because of that. That's the only frustrating thing about it.

What was it like working with Pierce Brosnan (who plays Charles Hawkins, Tyler’s father)?

It was good. We didn’t actually end up doing a lot of stuff together, but he was always really open and willing. If I ever wanted to talk about anything, he’d always come ‘round … He was the most unpretentious, hard-working person. I think he really likes the fact that he can play these character parts now and not be [typecast as] James Bond.

Robert Pattinson and Pierce Brosnan in "Remember Me"

What do you say to people who want to know about the meaning of "Remember Me," based on the title of the movie?

I don’t know. When I started on it, it was called "Memoirs," which I really couldn’t give you an explanation for. I don’t know. It’s an odd title. No one has really explained it to me. I have no idea what it's supposed to mean. I initially thought it was "Remember Me?," with a question mark. [I thought], "Is this a tease for bad reviews?" [He laughs.]

Do you see "Remember Me" as an important step in your career to show people that you're more than "Twilight"?

I think it's an important step. I don't think it's to show people I'm more than "Twilight." The sequels to "Twilight," I have the same mentality about that. I try to make a "Twilight" film to show I'm more than "Twilight," whatever that means. You try and improve; you try and take things from each job you get. I've just sort of fallen into it. I'm just trying to figure out how to do things.

Robert Pattinson (pictured at far left) and director Allen Coulter (pictured at far right) on the set of "Remember Me"

You've made several relatively low-budget independent films that counterbalance the "Twilight" movies. Do you plan to keep doing those type of indie films?

Not necessarily. I just liked the script of this ["Remember Me"]. The next few things I'm doing, I just liked the script. I'd be way more nervous doing a big kind of blockbuster which would go into the marketplace saying, "This has to be huge." I like doing ensemble things with established actors who are really good, and scripts that are kind of different, and hope people will be interested in them.

Are you a chain smoker like Tyler is?

I'm now chain eating Nicorette gum. I'm furiously addicted to that now, which is very annoying. I noticed that on planes and things, it does not help at all. It just makes you desperately want a cigarette.

Photo credits: Photo #1: Carla Hay. Photo #5: IFC Films. Photo #8: Getty Images. All other photos: Summit Entertainment.