Bella Swan

When you're talking about "The Hunger Games," it all comes down to Katniss. Like other strong-minded women who have driven book sales into the stratosphere - think Lisbeth Salander of the "Dragon Tattoo" triology and even Bella Swan of the "Twilight" series - ace archer Katniss Everdeen is an indomitable heroine whom nothing fazes or flusters for long. Making a successful "Hunger Games" movie out of Suzanne Collins' novel required casting the best possible performer as Katniss, and in Jennifer Lawrence director Gary Ross and company have hit the bull's-eye, so to speak.

A roundup of entertainment headlines for Friday. Britney Spears turns 30 today. ( MSNBC ) The National Board of Review has named "Hugo" best picture. ( Los Angeles Times ) The Grammys cut out of a lot of categories this year, and many in the music industry are not happy about it. ( Los Angeles Times ) The disaster-movie trend isn't over yet: "San Andreas: 3D" hopes to make giant earthquakes cool in 2012. ( Los Angeles Times ) Michelle Trachtenberg says she was almost Bella Swan in the "Twilight" movies.

Kristen Stewart has come a long way since her "Panic Room" days. Just ask her former costar Jodie Foster, a newcomer to last weekend's Comic-Con International in San Diego. "[Kristen] really should've given me some tips" on dealing with screaming fans, the actress told "Access Hollywood. " Foster was there to promote her own flick, "Elysium," costarring Matt Damon. Foster said Stewart was "absolutely brilliant" in "Snow White and the Huntsman" and was happy to reflect on her former costar, who was only 12 years old when she played Foster's daughter in the 2001 thriller.

In "The Twilight Saga," Robert Pattinson is required to move at superhuman speed, feast on woodland creatures and rip the limbs off fellow vampires. But the biggest challenge were his love scenes. Promoting the final film in the blockbuster franchise, Pattinson hit Australia for a photo call (the country's southern region is also a location for his next project "The Rover") and stopped by a local chat show to talk on-screen lovin' with co-star Kristen Stewart. "The sex scene in this one is pretty ridiculous," he said on the Kyle and Jackie O Show.

The concept of "forever" can be intimidating, especially when it comes to the voracious fans of "The Twilight Saga. " So consider that "Breaking Dawn - Part 2" saw its premiere in Los Angeles on Monday, drawing to a close a franchise of five films, the making of three superstars and a new kind of dialogue between filmmaker and fans. So how to celebrate? Following the screening of the second half of Bill Condon's conclusion to the series, a party was staged at L.A. Live that encapsulated the journey of "Twilight" - and demanded leads Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.  PHOTOS: 'Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2' premiere "The first party was about 400 [people]"

Fanged characters have sunk their teeth — sorry about that — into the adult and young adult book markets, so is it really a surprise to find a new children's book called "Dick and Jane and Vampires" (Grosset & Dunlap: 144 pp., $9.99, ages 5 and up)? The original "Dick and Jane" series dates to the 1930s, when educators Zerna Sharp and William S. Gray were looking for a way to help young children develop their reading skills. Now Laura Marchesani and illustrator Tommy Hunt have teamed to continue the pair's adventures, featuring a smiling bloodsucker who just wants to make friends and encounters the children in all kinds of daffy situations.

Headstrong Bella is in love with a vampire. Zoey has a crescent moon seared onto her forehead, the mark of a fledgling bloodsucker. Sixteen-year-old Ever can hear people's thoughts. Calliope is, reluctantly, Death's daughter. All are modern female heroes written by women, read by women and not only obsessed over by teenagers but also their older sisters and mothers.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse Summit, $28.99/$32.99; Blu-ray, $34.99/$40.99 The "Twilight" movie-making machine is cranking out adaptations of Stephenie Meyer's novels at a blistering pace, with "Eclipse" arriving a mere seven months after the second film, "New Moon. " The "Twilight" team has begun to get a better handle on the series' mix of teen romance and supernatural adventure too: "Eclipse" is the bloodiest and most action-packed of the first three "Twilight" movies, as a new vampire army arises to try to take out Bella Swan.

There probably will be a happily-ever-after ending for "Snow White and the Huntsman" at the box office this weekend. The adaptation of the classic fairy-tale -- the second take on "Snow White" to hit theaters this year -- is expected to open with a solid sum of $40 million to $45 million, according to those who have seen pre-release audience surveys. The studio behind the film, Universal Pictures, is projecting a softer opening of between $30 million and $35 million. Either way, the movie  should open with far more than March's "Mirror Mirror," Relativity Media's more comedic spin on Snow White starring Lily Collins and Julia Roberts, which launched with a weak $18 million domestically and ultimately collected $62 million.

Kristen Stewart is still sorry, folks. In a sweeping, general, you-still-don't-own-me sort of way. "I apologize to everyone for making them so angry," the actress told Newsweek, presumably referring to her "indiscretion" with married director Rupert Sanders back in July, which rattled her relationship with Robert Pattinson and sent shock waves through the "Twilight" fan community. "It was not my intention. " What her intention was is not made clear in the interview , published Monday, though we assume it was something along the all-I-wanna-do-is-have-some-fun spectrum - something not unheard of for a woman in her early 20s. PHOTOS: Rob and Kristen through the years It's not the first time Stewart has expressed remorse after she was photographed in intimate embraces with her "Snow White and the Huntsman" director.