A local cinema in Melbourne has released a tongue-in-cheek plea for information following the theft of a well-loved cardboard cut-out this week.
In a daring early morning heist, a life-size standee of Twilight vampire Edward Cullen, the character played by Robert Pattinson, was stolen from Carlton’s Cinema Nova at 1:31am on Sunday. The popular independent cinema was in the middle of an all-night Twilight marathon, with all five of the hugely popular films from the series running back-to-back.
A CCTV image of the Edward Cullen cardboard cut-out being stolen in the early hours of Sunday.
Based on the popular book series by Stephenie Meyer, the Twilight films focus on an intense love triangle between a mortal girl, a broody vampire forever frozen at the age of 17 (Cullen), and a young werewolf. The franchise quickly became a phenomenon, launching Pattinson to heart-throb status.
The standee is an original from 2008, and prior to being donated to the cinema had been with the previous owner for over a decade. Though the final film came out in 2012, the fan-base for the series is still strong, with the movie marathon bringing in 600 attendees.
The donated cut-out features Pattinson as Cullen, and is around six feet tall. “He’s got a huge crinkle in the middle of his face, which makes him distinctive,” Cinema Nova employee Lucy Fenwick Elliott told The Age.
It had been on display in the foyer during the cinema’s marathon screening, and though staff and patrons were present, the thieves carefully chose their moment to strike.
“We checked the security footage, and it’s a four-person heist,” Fenwick Elliott said.
Photograph of Cinema Nova staff member Lucy Fenwick Elliott with an Edward Cullen standee which was later stolen during a Twilight movie marathon.Credit:Caitlin Pettit/Cinema Nova
The cut-out had been kept upstairs in the cinema office, where it “jump-scared everyone in the building probably like 15 times”. After being brought down for the marathon it only lasted a few hours in public before it was stolen.
It’s unclear whether the theft was planned ahead of time or a spur-of-the-moment decision, though either way the heist was well executed. “It looks to me like they were watching when someone was distracted,” Fenwick Elliot said. “They had lookouts on the stairs, and then they were watching the candy bar. When they knew that [the staff] were busy serving, they grabbed it and made a run for it.”
CCTV footage seen by cinema employees points to four young women, presumably Edward Cullen fans, as the perpetrators.
News of the theft was posted on the cinema’s Instagram, prompting an unexpected wave of messages, responses, theories and commiserations.
“Whoever stole this is on my list because I wanted to take a pic with him, and he was gone by then,” said one commenter.
“As if they left at 1:31am and didn’t finish all five films. Fake fans,” said another.
While the theft of a piece of cardboard is unlikely to be the biggest concern for Cinema Nova, as it adjusts to a post-lockdown world where audiences are starting to return to the movies, it has left staff feeling deflated.
“It was so lovely to see the balance of the ironic enjoyment of Twilight, and a really genuine joy, and I think that’s really come across with how people have reacted [to the theft],” said Fenwick Elliott. “I’ve gotten so many messages being like, ‘We’re so sorry, do you need information?’ People really care.”
So, what options are there if the thieves have a change of heart, are overcome with guilt, or simply tire of Cullen’s company? There are a few ways they can return the cut-out. Fenwick Elliott says the morning is a good time to drop it off unseen as there are few people around at that time.
“Or they could go to the back delivery door, press the buzzer and just run like hell.”
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