Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart And Cast Say Farewell At Breaking Dawn – Part 2 Premiere

Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart led the charge at the much anticipated Breaking Dawn – Part 2 world premiere in Los Angeles last night.

Attended by thousands of screaming, placard bearing fans — many of whom had camped for days — the black carpet event marked the first of four send-offs for Summit Entertainment’s wildly successful $ 2.5 billion franchise.

It was also the first opportunity for the entire cast of the last film in the series to come together after just over a month of international and domestic promotion.

Channeling old Hollywood glamour with a modern twist, Stewart, 22, wore a racy sheer gold-nude Zuhair Murad gown that revealed her slim figure. The actress matched her bygone era look with side swept, softly waved hair and dramatic make-up.

Pattinson, 26, wore an emerald green Gucci suit. “I had a dream about an emerald green houndstooth suit, and I got Gucci to make it,” the actor told reporters on the carpet.

Flanked by security as they arrived at the theater, the couple signed autographs and took pictures with fans individually before press interviews and joint shots on the carpet.

“I know the most go-to answer for everyone on these carpets is ‘Oh my gosh, this is so surreal,'” Stewart told the Los Angeles Times. “But to be honest with you, this time is so completely surreal. I’m trying to absorb it. I’m trying to be here.”

Her message to the fans that morphed the first, small Twilight movie into a commercial and pop culture juggernaut:

“I just wanna say. I never know what to say other than hi and thank you for – it sounds so cheesy but – taking the ride.”

In another part of the quadrant, Pattinson revealed a long running fear to MTV’s Josh Horowitz when asked how he felt about the big night:

“I’m always generally thinking ‘am I gonna get shot tonight?’ Every time I go out in public I think that. It’s really calm though this time, it’s not that crazy.”

After he was handed the winner’s award in MTV’s ‘Twi-Fight’ (most kick-ass Twilight character), Pattinson joked about beating Stewart. “Did she get second place?” he asked, laughing at the affirmative reply. “I wanna see that … someone has to call me back … when that happens.”

Taylor Lautner, third player in the saga’s’ trifecta, articulated the bittersweet feeling of the night to Reuters:

“I’m feeling fantastic, sad, emotional, there’s a lot of things going on inside of me right now but I’m just trying to soak up every moment because this means the world to me.”

Other cast members present included Billy Burke, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Ashley Green, Mackenzie Foy, Maggie Grace, Michael Sheen, Elizabeth Reaser, Kellan Lutz and an almost unrecognizable brunette Dakota Fanning. All thanked the fans in a special ‘Fan Cam’ set up by the event’s live streaming host Yahoo! Movies.

Keenly aware of the symbiotic relationship between the fans and the characters they shaped and created, director Bill Condon and grand dame author Stephenie Meyer also had heartfelt words for the ‘Fan Cam.’ Meyer said:

“Everybody’s been saying to me tonight that ‘Oh look you’re the reason why we’re all here’ and it’s really not true. The reason why we’re here is because you guys are unbelievable […] I cannot tell you how much of an impact you’ve made on my life and I so appreciate you.”

Among the non-Twilight stars who attended the premiere were soft rock legend Stevie Nicks, The Big Bang Theory’s Mayim Bialik, Saoirse Ronan and Elle Fanning.

After the film was screened, cast, creatives, crew and guests (in all, about 3, 500) headed to the after party inside Nokia Event Dock. Décor was themed with mini set reproductions from each Twilight movie and guests were greeted by the sight of Bella’s orange pickup truck.

The party lasted until around 01.00 am and all — including a casually dressed Pattinson and Stewart who arrived together — reportedly enjoyed a night either drinking, singing and dancing up a storm on the dancefloor.

From here, the Twilight Saga’s last hurrah moves on to premieres in London, Madrid and Berlin where they will do the whole thing again, though on a smaller scale. A pop culture phenomenon is taking its final bow. For now.