The father of Harry Potter star Emma Watson has issued a warning to the parents of the child stars set to front the TV adaptation of JK Rowling’s wizarding world franchise.
More than 30,000 children auditioned for the lead roles, with Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton and Alastair Stout announced to be playing Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.
The three newcomers will step into the roles made famous by Daniel Radcliffe, Watson, and Rupert Grint – and Watson’s dad Chris has shared his support for the child star’s parents who are about to witness their children’s lives change in a very drastic way.
‘As a parent, you have to be scared,” he told Times Radio. “This can be a very difficult thing for a parent and child to handle, or not.”
He continued: “It certainly helped that I don’t actually watch movies. It’s not a big thing in the house, and so it was easier for us to keep her feet on the ground.”
Another person to share advice for the trio of new actors is former Game of Thrones child star Isaac Hempstead Wright.
He said in a recent interview they should “enjoy every minute of it” and ”take every opportunity it affords” them.
“I can go to any country in the world and there will be someone there who’s pleased to see me,” he continued. “You go to some little bar in Madrid or wherever, and somebody will want to strike up a chat with you. It’s made the world a much smaller place.”
Potter star Radcliffe has been open about the low points in his life that were caused by scrutiny following his casting.
Towards the end of his Harry Potter contract, which took him from age 11 to 21, the actor turned to alcohol and has now been sober since 2012.
Meanwhile, Watson said in 2009, aged 19: “This all happened to me so young. It’s very hard to go back to that time and be like, ‘Did I want to do this?’ It feels very foggy.”
First announced in April 2023, HBO’s new Harry Potter series is expected to be a “faithful” adaptation of the bestselling books by Rowling.
The author, who maintains ownership over key aspects of Harry Potter intellectual property, including the characters, will serve as an executive producer on the series.
She said of the casting news: “All three are wonderful. I couldn’t be happier.”
