We asked director Chris Weitz if he fudged the book a bit to sneak in a full kiss between the most present “New Moon” stars.

“I can assure you we’re staying very, very close [to the book],” Weitz said. “No one will feel that I have betrayed Edward and Bella’s relationship.”

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MTV: Chris, “New Moon” has a lot of disparate elements. You need to portray a love that’s Shakespearean, like “Romeo and Juliet,” but at the same time do action scenes and car chases, and at the same time do effects work with werewolves and vampires. Which is the hardest, and how are you dealing with it?

Chris Weitz: The hardest thing to do is to blend all these elements into one thing that seems like a coherent whole. We [need to make sure we] don’t just stop for the action sequence or stop and have the audience say, “Oh, what a great special effect!” You want it to be a complete, seamless experience in which the emotions of the characters are what’s foremost. The hardest thing, but also the most enjoyable thing, is working with actors. You can control everything else, except the weather — what really matters is the characters and the feelings that they evoke in the readers of the book. It’s the hardest stuff, but it’s also the stuff that makes it the most satisfying when you get it right.

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It’s now July, and Weitz will face 6,000-plus screaming fans as he unveils never-before-seen footage from “New Moon” at Comic-Con International in San Diego on Thursday. At last year’s convention, months before “Twilight” was released, the delighted squeals were nearly deafening.

Driving home from a day of post-production, Weitz says he understands what’s at stake. There are 450 visual effects shots to complete, in addition to the score and the movie’s soundtrack, which he says will feature songs from Radiohead, Muse and Band of Skulls, among others. But the sequences he’s readying for the event — one, an action scene that will feature some of those effects, the other, a love scene sure to elicit hysteria from the crowd — will be done in time.

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Q: “Twilight” cost $37 million and made nearly $382 million worldwide. Do you feel pressure to top yourself?

A: “I don’t think that’s possible, and I don’t think that’s a healthy way to think. “Twilight” was a phenomenon — the stars just aligned on that film. Thank God (director) Ridley Scott didn’t stop after “Blade Runner.” He made “Thelma and Louise” and “Gladiator” and a million other interesting movies. I still want to make other good films that won’t lose money.”

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Q. How does it feel to take over directorial duties of such a successful franchise?

A. On the one hand, it’s exciting to take over a successful franchise. On the other, it’s daunting. There are so many fans who have high expectations for this film, but it’s made easy by the fact that I inherited this amazing cast who are certainly very talented. So half of the time, I’m just overjoyed to be a part of this and the other half, I’m nervous that I’m going to be hunted down and killed by a pack of 14-year-old teenage girls in about a year’s time!

Read the interview here.