Joan Jett and Kristen Stewart leave Sunset Sound studios on Monday
Photo: Splash News

Not only has Kristen Stewart embraced the role of Joan Jett by dying her hair black and cutting it into a mullet for her role in the upcoming film "The Runaways," now she's been spotted at a Los Angeles studio with Runaways founding member Joan Jett.

The duo — along with Stewart's "New Moon"/ "Runaways" castmate Dakota Fanning — hit Sunset Sound studios on Monday, where they were recording for the biopic, about the seminal all-teen-female 1970s rock band of the same name. While the Runaways, founded by Jett in 1975, never achieved large-scale commercial success, they were a galvanizing force on the Los Angeles punk scene, not to mention the first widely recognized all-female teen rock group and the spawning ground for the subsequent solo careers of Jett and guitarist Lita Ford.

Stewart, who was rocking a black hoodie, straight-legged jeans and sunglasses, met up with Jett, who was in a similar outfit, but wearing a leather jacket instead of a hoodie.

This isn't the first time the two have hung out. Back in March she told MTV News that the two were already on their way to becoming fast friends. "I've been listening to [Jett's] music all the time; I spent New Year's with her," she said. "I am just trying to make myself aware of the time period and what she was going through."

Adding that the role has the "most immense responsibilities," she said the movie allows her to tell "an incredibly triumphant feminist story, really. She is an incredibly distinct personality, and so many people love and admire her, and so many people know her as just being one of the coolest people ever to live — and that, in itself, has been one of the most intimidating things that I have ever had to confront."

Check out everything we've got on "The Runaways."

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• Kristen Stewart And Joan Jett Hit The Studio

• Joan Jett
• The Runaways

Kristen Stewart
Photo: James Devaney/ WireImage

Kristen Stewart is officially a star. Fresh off her well-received turn as Bella Swan in the smash hit "Twilight," she's taking on a daunting role: playing Joan Jett in a biopic produced by the rock legend herself and directed by music-video helmer Floria Sigismondi.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Stewart will star in "The Runaways," which will chronicle the rise and fall of the first successful all-girl hard-rock band. Their lineup included guitarists Jett and Lita Ford, drummer Sandy West and singer/keyboardist Cherie Currie; Micki Steele and Jackie Fox were the most prominent of their rotation cast of bassists. The band was initially seen as a novelty act, something that could be easily marketed as "jailbait on the run" dressed in leather and lingerie. However, the girls were all serious and skilled musicians who made their mark on the punk-rock scene and became hugely influential. (Who were the Runaways, and why would anyone make a movie about them? Find out here.)

The band came together in 1975 and lasted for about four years, adding and losing members, and eventually falling apart due to disagreements over money and management issues. Jett and Ford went on to enjoy highly successful solo careers, while Steele joined the Bangles.

"The Runaways" will follow Jett and Currie, from the teenage group's rapid rise to their disillusionment and decision to disband. The film is expected to begin shooting in early 2009 and will work around Stewart's commitment to "New Moon," the "Twilight" sequel that also plans to shoot early next year.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

• What Are 'Twilight' Stars Looking Forward To In 'New Moon'?

• Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner And More At The "Twilight" Premiere

• Joan Jett
• The Runaways

Joan Jett and Cherie Currie
Photo: Ken Phillips

ANAHEIM, California — For the first time in almost a quarter of a century, former Runaways Joan Jett and Cherie Currie appeared onstage together to bang out the seminal girl-band staple "Cherry Bomb."

Topping her hour-plus show Saturday night with the Blackhearts, Jett surprised the Sun Theatre crowd by introducing her childhood friend and ex-bandmate, who emerged in basic black instead of her once-trademark lingerie. Each appearing considerably younger than her 40 years, the ladies tore through the 1976 number like two sex-craved, rebellious teenagers born again — Currie singing and Jett playing guitar as though they were seducing and serenading each other. The song ended with Currie bowing at Jett's feet and the two sharing a hug and kiss.

"I was in the moment — I wasn't flashing back," Jett said afterward. "I was enjoying watching Cherie have fun, and I was having fun."

For Currie, the reunion was more nostalgic. "When we got onstage for soundcheck today, it was like a miracle, because we looked at each other and it was like 25 years earlier," she said. "This is the same kind of thrill as when we first walked onstage at the Santa Monica Civic [Auditorium] with Cheap Trick in 1976."

Both Jett and Currie say they're open to a full-fledged Runaways reunion if all the pieces fall into place. "When the timing is right, it will happen," Currie said, noting that guitarist Lita Ford recently gave birth to her second child.

Though drummer Sandy West was in attendance at Saturday's show, she did not perform with her former bandmates. Jett opted to have Currie join her and the Blackhearts rather than stage a quasi-Runaways reunion because she didn't feel it would be right without Ford, according to Jett's manager, Kenny Laguna.

Jett and Currie last played together in Japan in the summer of 1977. Following the departure of bassist Jackie Fox, Currie left the group, leaving Jett to assume lead vocal duties until the Runaways disbanded in 1979. Both Jett and Ford went on to successful solo careers, and Currie pursued acting and formed a band with her twin sister, Marie.

"I never in a million years thought that Joan was ever going to ask me onstage with her," Currie said. "I truly just can't believe it. I've dreamt about it, but Joan's got her thing, and I'm just there, and I support her and go to her shows."

Jett, who spent most of the last year playing Columbia in the Broadway revival of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," is currently doing spot dates with the Blackhearts. Her set list features staples such as "I Love Rock 'n' Roll," "Bad Reputation" and "I Hate Myself for Loving You," along with an eclectic batch of covers — past favorites such as "Love Is All Around" (the theme to "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"), Sly & the Family Stone's "Everyday People" and the Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog," plus a punked-up version of the "Rocky Horror" track "Science Fiction" and the Replacements' "Androgynous."

Both "Science Fiction" and "Androgynous" should appear on Joan Jett & the Blackhearts' next album, which is awaiting a release date from Warner Bros., Laguna said.

A documentary about the Runaways, produced and directed by former bassist Victory "Vicki Blue" Tischler-Blue, is in the works (see "Rare Joan Jett, Lita Ford Footage To Appear In Runaways Movie"). Jett is not cooperating with the project.

• The Runaways
• Joan Jett

The Runaways, circa 1976
Photo: Mercury

Though often ridiculed as prefabricated poster girls for male sexual fantasies, the Runaways blazed a trail for women in rock by launching a guitar-driven assault on pop music. Now, thanks to "Edgeplay: A Film About the Runaways," a new generation of female rockers can acknowledge the debt owed to these underground sirens.

Produced and directed by former Runaways bassist Vicki Blue (now credited as Victory Tischler-Blue), the documentary features performance footage as well as new and old interviews with onetime bandmembers Joan Jett, Lita Ford, Cherie Currie and Sandy West, among others. The clips, many of which were shot by fans on Super 8 film and later sent to Blue, are bolstered by cutting-edge visual effects and an innovative approach to filmmaking that makes it "more like a dark ride than a documentary film," Blue said.

The film will be finished in September and entered into next year's Sundance Film Festival, which takes place in January. The response received from the festival will determine the release date and whether or not the film will make it into theaters.

Singer Currie, drummer West (Sandy Pesavento), bassist Jackie Fox (Jacqueline Fuchs) and guitarists Jett (Joan Larkin) and Ford were assembled in 1975 by manager Kim Fowley and released their self-titled debut the following year. The teenage lineup underwent several renovations, and the band eventually called it quits in 1979, but not before gaining a reputation for wearing trashy lingerie onstage. The lingerie, which was Fowley's idea, proved to be a double-edged sword: it won the band attention at the cost of credibility.

"Edgeplay: A Film About the Runaways" is the culmination of three years of work. Blue, who has worked as a television producer/director for nearly 15 years, originally intended to compile the footage for personal posterity and send the tapes out as gifts to her former bandmates. While she was editing the film, several people nearby, who turned out to be Runaways fans, heard the music coming from Blue's edit bay. It then became clear that more than those involved would be interested in the band's story.

"Edgeplay" refers to the S&M term for pushing oneself to the limits of reality and fantasy, a definition that Blue said suits the experience of being in the Runaways.

"It's basically defining your own limits and how far you are willing to go within the confines of your own being," Blue said of the title. "The story of the Runaways is quite a dark tale, where things are never really as they seemed, ... along with the fact that we were only 16 and 17 years old and traveling around the world completely unchaperoned."

• The Runaways
• Joan Jett
• Lita Ford