I’m trying to remember the last time I saw Nikki Reed in a non-Twilight movie. Her IMDb page reveals a semi-steady workload of mostly VOD titles. She does do a lot of charity work. This photo shows Nikki at a Lindt Gold Bunny auction to benefit autism research. Nikki has a brother on the autism spectrum, so this cause is very personal to her.

Nikki also has a new interview with Yahoo! to promote her new partnership with Thrive Market, which is an online membership service that offers organic and non-GMO groceries at wholesale prices. They claim Whole Foods quality at Costco prices. For every membership sold, Thrive will donate one to a low-income family. The company website says a yearly membership costs about $60, and then you buy groceries at a discount. Nikki finds this Thrive partnership to be a personal cause too. She tells Yahoo! that she didn’t have healthy or organic foods available at all when she was growing up. This sounds like something Vivienne Westwood should read:

Nikki’s early career goals: “I wanted to be a vet and take care of animals. I didn’t ever think of myself as an actress.”

Her poor childhood: “I grew up eating off the dollar menu at every fast food restaurant. When you have a single mother that makes $15,000 a year for her two kids in a major city like Los Angeles, money runs out quickly. If my mom could have afforded it she would have bought healthy organic vegetables, but we didn’t have the money.”

Her career these days: “I do feel like it’s important for women in particular to focus on having a little more control over the roles that they choose. Creating something is oftentimes your best bet. I’m actually currently writing a feature that I’m planning on directing. I started in this business when I was only 13, and I’m still very young. At this age my primary focus and goal is chasing directors I want to work with and chasing material.”

[From Yahoo! Style]

Nikki also talks about her her endless supply of pets (including a horse with Ian) are taken care of by her mom. Nikki built her mom a guest house so she can always be present for pet care. Strange? It’s not quite a Katy Perry move. Nikki provides free room and board for her mom in exchange for pet care. I guess it works for everyone involved. Nikki’s very generous with animals and active with charity. I’m sure she’s geting a cut from this Thrive deal, but she’s also trying to bring attention to the free memberships for low-income families. Still … I gotta throw a little shade at Nikki and Ian Somerhalder’s red carpet behavior at last month’s Noble Awards. Who does this?

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet & WENN