Rupert Grint has spoken about the popularly held belief that he and the other Harry Potter child stars would “go off the rails,” as well as the media’s obsession with contrasting their respective careers.
Speaking to Bustle, the actor confessed that starring in Harry Potter was, at times, “suffocating” and “an out-of-body experience”, but that he has always tried to stay away from being a stereotype.
“I’ve always felt there was this expectation for us to go off the rails, follow the child star stereotype,” Grint says. “That’s always been something to fight against.”
To that end, instead of going further into the spotlight, Grint decided to pause his acting career so he could reflect on his experiences as a young actor in the spotlight.
Since Ron Weasley appeared in his life during his formative years, both actor and character ended up merging their personalities, and still to this day he answers to the name Ron. Moreover, even though he didn’t think enough time had passed for a Harry Potter reunion, he gladly participated in HBO Max’s Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts television special and met his co-stars, individuals whom he cherishes.
More recently, after a creative journey through theater, comedy, and indie films, the Potter star became a father and starred in the Apple TV+ thriller Servant; an episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, and in the 2023 movie Knock at the Cabin.
Knock at the Cabin, in particular, is an exciting horror movie that hits cinemas on Feb. 3 and is his first feature film since Moonwalkers in 2015. Grint spoke on acting in the thriller a bit below:
“I’m enjoying being a dad, doing dad things,” he says, smiling with all his teeth. “I like the idea of doing something light next — like a Christmas movie.” He laughs: “I’m happy with where I’ve ended up.”
As for his co-stars, Daniel Radcliffe has been involved with both cinema and theater projects since his Harry Potter days and Emma Watson kept working as an actress while also delving into activism being a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and helping to launch campaigns like HeForShe and Time’s Up UK. It doesn’t look like these stars will go off the rails any time soon.