Kellan Lutz Interview – Desert Dawn, Twilight and More!

Jeff: Kellan, welcome! First off, I gotta say—loved your new movie. It was seriously good, brother. And how are you doing?

Kellan Lutz: I’m great, man. It’s sunny here in Nashville, Tennessee, so that always puts a smile on my face. Gray days are the worst—so when it’s bright, it’s a good day.

Jeff: I love hearing that. And, honestly, it’s amazing to finally have you here on Action Reloaded. You’re one of the people I’ve really wanted to speak with for a long time, so this is a treat.

Kellan: Thanks, brother. Appreciate that.

Jeff: I remember trying to set something up with you before. I think you were at Comic Con in Belfast, but life got in the way.

Kellan: Yeah, man—Belfast was awesome. I loved being there. Great people, great vibe.

Jeff: I’d actually planned to come up and check it out myself, but yeah—life, right? Believe it or not, as much of a movie fanatic as I am, I’ve never made it to a Comic Con.

Kellan: You’ve got to change that! They’re so much fun, especially now. Back when we did Twilight, you had all the “Twi-moms” out in full force—it was a bit wild in a good way. Now? Those same Twi-moms are grandmas bringing their grandkids. It’s become this awesome multigenerational thing. Really chill. You just get to hang out with great people and soak it all in.

Jeff: Speaking of Twilight—you recently reunited with Cam Gigandet. What was that like?

Kellan: It was great, man. Cam’s a super talented actor. Back in Twilight, we didn’t have much screen time together—just a couple scenes, including the big face-off and the moment we killed him. [laughs] But working with him as partners this time around—he’s just really collaborative and sharp. We had a great dynamic. And yeah, I think a lot of people are going to be surprised by the twist in the film. Everyone assumes Cam’s the villain again—he’s played the bad guy so well in the past—but not this time. Spoiler alert: he’s actually my deputy. We butt heads, sure, but there’s mutual respect.

Jeff: And then you’ve got Chad Michael Collins in there too!

Kellan: Yeah! First time working with Chad. He’s a total stud—super humble, very professional. I loved having him on set. Between him, Cam, and the rest of the cast, we really had a good team on this one.

Jeff: The trailer looked badass. Was it the action that drew you to the script—or something else?

Kellan: So I’d worked with Al Bravo and the Saban team the year before on Due Justice up in Seattle. We really clicked. Al’s one of those producers you just love working with—he’s passionate and collaborative. About a year later, he sent me a script by Chad Law. I read it, saw potential, and asked if we could tweak some stuff to flesh out the characters more. Al was totally on board. So yeah, part of it was the action, but a lot of it was just wanting to work with good people again. We shot in Nevada, and the whole experience was just solid.

Jeff: You’ve really carved out a spot in the action world since Twilight. How does that feel?

Kellan: Honestly, it’s awesome. I grew up with five brothers, so every day was like an action movie. [laughs] Trying to get food, protect your clothes—it was chaos in the best way. So stepping into action films just felt natural. Expendables 3 was a huge moment for me. I mean, I’m in a helicopter with the Terminator, Indiana Jones, Blade, Zorro—like, come on. It was surreal. Those were my heroes. And then getting to work with Sly—man, the stories he shared… he’s done it all. Drama, comedy, action. He really inspired me to keep diversifying, to try everything.

Jeff: There’s a scene in your new movie—can’t spoil too much—but there’s this woman dealing with domestic violence. Your character shows up at the door, and it felt like such a Jack Reacher moment.

Kellan: Yeah, man. Totally had that vibe. I think we shot this a couple years ago, maybe before Reacher came out? But watching that show now, I’m like, “Oh yeah, this hits that same nerve.” And that scene—it’s heavy. But moments like that ground the action. It’s not just about explosions. It’s about protecting people.

Jeff: That’s what stood out. The movie’s got that popcorn action appeal, but underneath, it’s dealing with some dark, real-world stuff.

Kellan: Exactly. There’s definitely gray area. You know, where does the law stop when it gets personal? The movie plays with that a lot. I love that balance—fun action, but layered with meaning. And yeah, we also wanted to shine a light on real issues, like trafficking and domestic violence. You never want to glorify it—but you want to tell the truth about it.

Jeff: And that twist! Can’t say much, but wow—it hit.

Kellan: [laughs] Appreciate that. Yeah, it was fun to play with expectations.

Jeff: So what’s next? More brawls, more shootouts?

Kellan: [laughs] A bit of everything, actually. I’ve got two films later this year. One, I play a doctor in a really heartfelt, faith-based story. The other’s a comedy—it’s about a breakup and a pet custody battle. Like, who gets the dog? So totally different vibes. I love mixing it up.

Jeff: That’s amazing. And The Comeback with Lisa Kudrow—didn’t I hear something about that returning?

Kellan: Yeah! I was in the first two seasons, and I’ve heard it’s coming back. Hopefully I get to cameo again. That’d be a blast.

Jeff: You’re definitely keeping busy, man. And I have to say—you bring this raw intensity to your action roles, but every character feels different. That’s rare.

Kellan: Thanks, man. That means a lot. I really try to make each role its own thing. I’d love to do sequels—if that means the movie resonated, let’s do Desert Dawn 2 tomorrow! But yeah, even if it’s just a one-off, I want to make it memorable.