As a vampire, Riley is tall and muscular with bright red eyes and blond hair. Victoria bites and changes Riley when he is approximately Bella's age in Eclipse. Once Riley ages and gains some control, he helps to lead Victoria's army of newborn vampires. He performs his work faithfully because of his love for Victoria, which she pretends to return. However, in a battle between the army of newborns and the Cullens at the end of Eclipse, Edward voices Riley's concern that Victoria has been lying to him. Edward first tries to convince Riley to stop fighting, but finally kills him with the help of Seth Clearwater.
In the film The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, Riley is described as a "good-looking college student" and will be portrayed by Australian actor Xavier Samuel.