The television and film star rose out of relative obscurity with a breakout role in "Twilight" (2008), one of the most successful film franchises of all time. Rathbone played Jasper Hale, a "newborn" vampire who needed to control his urge to feast on human blood, especially that of the saga's protagonist Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart). The film series, like the Stephenie Meyer novels they were based on, followed his character's personal journey, from coping with his killer instincts in "Twilight" and "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" (2009), to becoming the unsung hero of 2010's "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse." That same year, Rathbone played a warrior in M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender," a physically challenging and emotional role that kicked the talented actor's career into high gear.
Monroe Jackson Rathbone was born on Dec. 21, 1984 in Singapore to Randee Lynn (née Brauner) and Monr Jackson Rathbone IV. The future star spent many of his formative years moving - from Indonesia to Texas - because of his father's job at Mobil Oil. Rathbone began acting in high school productions and as a member of The Pickwick Players, a youth actors program. He attended Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, MI, where he met Ben Graupner and Ben Johnson, the other two members of his band 100 Monkeys. Shortly after high school, Rathbone decided to head out west to Los Angeles for a shot at stardom. He made his onscreen debut as a correspondent for "Disney 411," a youth-based entertainment news program, where he interviewed stars such as actress and singer Hilary Duff.
In 2005, Rathbone acted in the short-lived drama series "Beautiful People" (ABC Family, 2005-06) starring Daphne Zuniga as a single mother who moves from New Mexico to New York City with her two daughters (Torrey DeVitto and Sarah Foret). Rathbone played the young and debonair Nicholas, who becomes Foret's love interest. After appearing in a handful of independent feature films, Rathbone was cast in "Twilight," the 2008 adaptation of Meyer's hit novel, published three years earlier. He played Jasper Hale, a vampire who possessed the power to manipulate emotions of those around him. His character's back story was a central story arc in "Eclipse" - from his transformation into a vampire in the late 1800s, to joining the human-friendly Cullen clan, to protecting Bella from an army of vampires intent on killing her.
The commercial success of the "Twilight" films, fueled by the plot's supernatural love story and its young Hollywood cast, thrust Rathbone into a world filled with screaming fans and whirlwind promotional appearances. However, the character actor stuck by his indie film roots, starring in non-mainstream projects in 2009 such as "S. Darko" - a sequel to the 2001 cult-hit feature, "Donnie Darko" - and the horror flick, "Dread," from writer Clive Barker In 2010, Rathbone starred in another big-budget production, "The Last Airbender," an action/adventure film from writer and director M. Night Shyamalan in which he played Sokka, a young warrior who accompanies the film's hero Aang (Noah Ringer) on a thrilling and dangerous journey to the North Pole.
