Bryce Dallas Howard is set to replace Rachelle Lefevre in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the third film in the Twilight franchise.

Access Hollywood is reporting that Lefevre, who played Victoria in the first Twilight film, would not be resuming her role in Eclipse because of scheduling conflicts. It was reported earlier this month that Lefevre was joining Minnie Driver in the cast of Barney’s Vision, which begins filming the same day as Eclipse.

Howard, who’s known for her roles in Spider-Man 3 and most recently in Terminator Salvation, will take over as the evil vampire out for revenge over the death of her lover.

“Rachelle brought ‘Victoria’ to great screen life and Bryce will bring a new dimension to the character,” said Erik Feig of Summit Entertainment in a statement to Access Hollywood.

Eclipse is scheduled to begin filming in Vancouver on August 17, 2009, with a release date of June 30, 2010.

I haven’t read Eclipse yet, so I’m not sure how this casting change will affect the franchise. I do know that Howard is a good, likable actress and I’ve enjoyed her work in all of her role. But, does the innocent-looking Howard have what it takes to be an evil vampire, and one on a path of revenge at that? While Lefevre has the beauty of a dark vampire and definitely came across as evil, I wasn’t wowed by her acting in Twilight. I’m interested to see just how Howard will transform for this role.

I wonder what the fans will think though: Is Bryce Dallas Howard a good choice to replace Rachelle Lefevre as Victoria in Eclipse?

[Source via Movie Banter]