Being a part of something as big as Harry Potter will inevitably shape any actor’s career. That’s doubly true if Harry Potter was one of the first things you ever did in front of a camera. Rupert Grint was one of the young actors who grew up in front of our eyes throughout the Harry Potter movies in order, playing our hero’s best friend Ron Weasley.
Grint was just 11 years old when he signed on the dotted line to play one of the best Harry Potter characters, forming the lead trio along with Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson. He spent more than a decade as Ron, with only occasional forays into other work, such as the less-than-brilliant family comedy Thunderpants.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Grint explained that watching the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was an unusual experience for him, witnessing a different actor take on the role of a middle-aged version of Ron.
Grint said: “I wasn’t really prepared for it. It hit me quite hard. It was kind of like an out of body experience. You’re seeing someone else take on a character that you’ve known for so long. I kind of grew up with Ron. I do feel like a lot of me is in that character. I have a weird relationship with Ron, where it’s kind of basically me. And seeing it live on is very surreal.”
There’s no denying that Grint brought a lot of himself to Ron and, when you’ve spent most of your formative years living partially as somebody else, they’re bound to stick with you into adulthood.
Despite his own strange feelings, Grint said the show was “amazing” and added that “it blows your mind to see this magic world on stage live in front of you”. He’ll presumably be first in line when the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child release date on the big screen comes around, whether he’s part of the Harry Potter cast for that one or not.
We’ve got plenty of opinions about the best movies in the Potter franchise, so find out why we still can’t forgive the Harry Potter finale and take a look at the best Harry Potter spells. We’ve also explained why the most heart-breaking Harry Potter scene wasn’t even in the movies and provided fun facts about Hagrid, Voldemort, and Luna Lovegood.