Twilight's Cullen Family Tree and Character Ages, Explained (2024)

The Twilight Saga is one of the most popular film series of all time, owing to its beautiful depiction of a human-vampire romance. As a matter of fact, the film series portrayed vampires in an entirely different context, with them resisting the sunlight and most abstaining from killing humans for blood. While the characters Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) are the main selling points of the story, many viewers were equally fascinated by the whole Cullen family.

Beginning with Twilight in 2008, the franchise expanded to five movies by 2012, all while capturing the attention of the majority of its viewers, transforming them into devoted romantics of both films and books. With that said, aside from Edward, Bella, and Jacob, who all had substantial screen time, it is worth mentioning that the entire Cullen family has a certain appeal that keeps the viewers engaged. As the story progresses, you may have gotten interested in the family tree and other details, such as their ages, especially given how long they have lived.

The Cullen Family Tree

Carlisle Cullen

Founder and Patriarch — 365 Years Old

Carlisle Cullen, the founder of the Cullen clan, was born in London in 1640, but he was turned into a vampire by a mysterious person in 1663 (at the age of 23). After turning Esme Cullen into a vampire in 1921, he marries her, and they become adoptive parents to Edward, Emmett, Alice, Rosalie, and Jasper. Carlisle had been living alone for nearly 150 years, so it's no surprise that he is quite compassionate and caring towards his family.

Esme Cullen

Matriarch — 110 Years Old

Esme, portrayed by Elizabeth Reaser, is Carlisle's wife and acts as a mother to the younger Cullens. After Edward, she is the second member to join the Cullen family. She becomes the family's matriarch after Carlisle turns her into a vampire in 1921. Even though she had met him ten years prior, Carlisle wouldn't turn her into a vampire unless her life was at stake. She eventually walks into an abusive marriage, resulting in her daughter's death just two days after giving birth.

After Esme attempts suicide, Carlisle turns her into a vampire on her deathbed, ultimately falling in love and starting a beautiful family. Consequently, Esme's adoptive family considers her to be the ideal maternal figure, thanks to her strong affection for everyone around her.

Edward Cullen

Adoptive Son and Bella's Husband — 104 Years Old

Edward Cullen is the first to join the Cullen family, having been turned into a vampire by Carlisle in 1921, when he was just 17 years old. Carlisle was already an esteemed physician when he met Edward, who was dying of influenza. In order to fulfill the dying wish of Edward's mother, Carlisle transforms Edward into a vampire and adopts him as his own. Edward was born in 1901, making him 104 years old, as The Twilight Saga takes place in 2005.

Rosalie Hale

Adoptive Daughter and Emmett's Wife — 90 Years Old

While Esme's backstory sounds dreadful, Rosalie had the most painful past in the franchise. Rosalie Hale, played by Nikki Reed and born in 1915, is subjected to an unimaginable experience when she is assaulted and left for dead by her fiancé and his friends on the street. After Carlisle turns her into a vampire, she exacts her revenge on the culprits and moves on to spend her life with the new family. Although Carlisle's hope was that Rosalie would be a romantic companion for Edward when she became the fourth member of the clan, she ended up marrying Emmett. Rosalie was 90 years old when she appeared in The Twilight Saga.

Emmett Cullen

Adoptive Son and Rosalie's Husband — 90 Years Old

Emmett Cullen, played by Kellan Lutz, was the next to join the family. He is physically the strongest vampire in the Cullen family but was found near death after being mauled by a bear in 1935. He is then saved by Rosalie, who later requests Carlisle to transform him into a vampire. Thereafter, he would fall in love with Rosalie and marry her, intending to spend the rest of their lives together. Emmett and Rosalie are both 90 years old, having been born in 1915, but the latter had been turned into a vampire two years prior.

Alice Cullen

Adoptive Daughter, Jasper's Wife — 104 Years Old

Unlike the other Cullen family members, Carlisle does not turn Alice (Ashley Greene) into a vampire, but instead, she seeks them out. Alice experiences visions as a human, and after discovering that her father was responsible for her mother's murder, she is sent to an asylum before being bitten by an unknown vampire as a gesture of goodwill. Following a vision of Jasper Hale, the pair would subsequently join the tranquil family of Carlisle. Alice became a vampire in 1920 at the age of 19. Therefore, she was 104 years old when The Twilight Saga began.

Jasper Hale

Adoptive Son, Alice's Husband — 161 Years Old

Jasper Hale (Jackson Rathbone), another of the adoptive Cullen children, is another exception in the Cullen family, as he wasn't turned by Carlisle. He was initially turned into a vampire by Maria in 1863 when he was a major in the Confederate Army. After assisting Maria in creating an army of newborn vampires, his following few decades were filled with violence and carnage, leaving an indelible mark on his conscience. In 1948, he meets Alice and joins the Cullen family, bidding farewell to the life of eternal slaughter. Despite being one of the oldest vampires, he was among the last to join the Cullen coven, along with Alice.

Bella Swan

Protagonist, Edward's Wife — 18 Years Old

We now move on to Bella Swan, The Twilight Saga's protagonist, who falls in love with Edward and marries him in 2006. In the first film, she is a typical 17-year-old girl who moves to Forks, Washington, to live with her father, Charlie. However, after almost dying while giving birth to her daughter, she is turned into a vampire by Edward. She was 18 years old when she became a vampire, and often uses it to tease Edward for being a year younger. Bella subsequently pledges her allegiance to the Cullen coven, becoming an eternal member of the family.

Renesmee Cullen

Bella and Edward's Daughter — 4 Months Old

Renesmee Cullen is Bella and Edward's unexpected daughter. She is seen as a miracle in the story, having barely survived the ordeal. However, she is born a vampire hybrid and grows very quickly, thus, she doesn't look four months old. Renesmee was deemed a threat to the vampires, and Volturi arrives in Forks to kill her in the final film. However, she is saved by Nahuel, another vampire-human hybrid, who reveals that Renesmee is not an immortal child, demonstrating that she poses no harm to their species. Currently, she is the only hybrid endowed with supernatural abilities.