Lots of actors don’t enjoy the experience of watching their own movies, but that feeling must be much more intense for child stars. Take Rupert Grint, for example. The British actor known the world over for playing the Boy Who Lived’s best pal Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies has revealed that he can’t watch past the third entry in the franchise because of his own performances.
To promote his role in The ABC Murders, a BBC adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel, Grint spoke to Radio Times and explained that he can watch and enjoy the first couple of films, but any of the later ones he can’t because he struggles to distance himself from his turn as Ron.
“I think those early ones are OK. More time has passed. I can detach myself a bit more from that kid. I did see Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone not long ago, for the first time since the premiere, and I actually enjoyed looking back. But the more recent ones I definitely couldn’t do. I could probably go up to [third film] Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.”
Grint’s discomfort with watching the later Harry Potter movies may stem from the difficulties he had making them. The 30-year-old star has previously opened up about the fact that his global fame weighed down on him as a teen, so much so that he almost quit the franchise after Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (the fourth installment). In the same interview with RT, Grint even admits that he’s sometimes wished that he hadn’t played Ron or even gone into acting at all.
There’s been some chatter about the chances of Daniel Radcliffe returning to the Wizarding World, perhaps in a movie adaptation of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in a few years’ time. And while it’s tough to say if that’ll ever come to pass, we definitely don’t expect to see Rupert Grint making a comeback as Ron at any point.
