JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the first "Twilight" book. The fictional story of vampires, werewolves and teenage love is set in the real town of Forks, Washington. It was once the self-proclaimed logging capital of the world, but that industry has waned, and now there's a booming "Twilight" economy. Matt Martin from member station KUOW took a drive out there.
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MATT MARTIN, BYLINE: At a small pull-off next to scenic Highway 101, Jay Marazon holds up his smartphone to snap a photo of his niece, "Twilight" fan Katie Baker.
JAY MARAZON: Got it.
KATIE BAKER: Yay.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTIN: The pair is standing in front of a large green sign that says, the city of Forks welcomes you. Baker is visiting from Florida and has loved "Twilight" since her sister gifted her the first book.
BAKER: I just love the story behind it and, like, just how they're together forever 'cause I guess I'm just, like, a hopeless romantic.
MARTIN: In case you're not familiar, the "Twilight" series is about a teenager who falls in love with an ancient vampire and - spoiler - becomes one herself so she can eternally be with him.
BAKER: My childhood, I was coming up on "Twilight," so it would be a sin if I didn't come here and check it out.
MARTIN: Baker is one of many people who come to Forks each year because of the "Twilight" books and movies. It's not the only reason. The town is on the Olympic Peninsula, which is full of beautiful beaches, parks and forests. Still, there's been a huge uptick in visitors since "Twilight." The year after the first movie was released, the number of people who stopped by the visitor center in town jumped by about 50,000. And Forks has embraced the attention. As you drive into town, you might tune into a local radio station...
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UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTISTS: (Singing) Twilight 96.7.
MARTIN: ...Twilight 96.7, or pop into a local cafe.
Can I get the Twilight tea?
But it wasn't always this way. Forks was a logging town.
TOM ROSMOND: In the 1960s and '70s, which is kind of the peak of the logging activity in this area, this was a very wealthy town.
MARTIN: Tom Rosmond's family owned a sawmill here that shut down in 1989. He says increased regulations, overharvesting and more milling overseas led to the decline of the industry here.
ROSMOND: We had meetings in this town asking, what's the future of Forks? It was no longer the wealthy town that it had been.
LISSY ANDROS: They were starting to, like, board up the windows on businesses downtown. It was dismal.
MARTIN: Lissy Andros is a "Twilight" superfan who moved to Forks from Texas because of the books. She now heads the local "Twilight" museum and the Chamber of Commerce.
ANDROS: And when the "Twilight" book was published and then the movie was announced, it just breathed life into the area.
MARTIN: In 2023, food, retail and accommodations made up 32% of the economy in Forks. Two decades before, it was 16%.
There is one big complaint from some locals. "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer based her werewolves on lore from the neighboring Quileute tribe. The website Truth Versus Twilight is a collaboration between the Quileute tribe and the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. It says Meyer misrepresented their culture and that the Quileute people are portrayed as mythic characters in a fantasy role, rather than as human beings. The tribe declined a request for an interview, and Stephenie Meyer did not respond to a request for comment.
But tourists keep coming. 2024 saw a record-breaking year. Tom Rosmond is still surprised at this continued love for "Twilight."
ROSMOND: Many people, including myself, says, well, this is popular culture. You know, it'll last for a couple of years, two or three years, and something else will come along, and it'll be forgotten. It hasn't.
MARTIN: It seems, just like vampires, "Twilight" may live forever. For NPR News, I'm Matt Martin in Forks.
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