Emma Watson's dad warns parents of new Harry, Ron and Hermione of 'impact of fame on children' as HBO TV series begins filming

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Emma Watson 's dad has warned the parents of the new Harry, Ron and Hermione of the 'impact of fame on children' as filming for the HBO TV series begins.
The latest leading trio were finally announced this week after months of speculation - with Dominic McLaughlin landing the title role, while Arabella Stanton is set to play Hermione Granger and Alastair Stout will portray Ron Weasley.
Emma, 35, played Hermione for ten years in the Harry Potter film series, and now her dad Chris has told of how he worked hard to keep her 'grounded.'
He told Times Radio: 'As a parent, you have to be scared ... This can be a very difficult thing for a parent and child to handle, or not.
'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.'
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He added: 'Normal life continued as far as possible: her homework would go back to school on motorbikes, admittedly, but she had to do her homework and check in.'
Filming for the new HBO series started this week in France with cast and crew setting up on the Île de Sein off the coast of Brittany where they are thought to be re-creating the famous moment that Hagrid says, 'You're a wizard Harry!'
JK Rowling gave her approval to the trio cast as the new child stars of the multi-million-pound TV adaptation - after previously giving short shrift to racists complaining about producers' picks.
There has been some online backlash against what has been branded ' woke ' reinterpreting of the wizarding franchise based on the seven bestselling books by Rowling, 59, which prompted eight movie versions.
But the multi-millionaire author yesterday gave her first public response to the new Harry Potter television casting announcement, with showbusiness insiders suggesting she would have a key role in the new productions.
One fan took to X, formerly known as Twitter, asking the bestselling author to inform the new recruits the wizarding franchise's creator felt about their casting.
And now Rowling has responded by declaring: 'All three are wonderful. I couldn't be happier.'
The writer was replying to a tweet which said: '@jk_rowling @streamonmax @harrypotter Please tell Dominic, Arabella and Alistair that they are already loved by the fandom and we can't wait to see the show! We wish them all the best and that they have a magic time.'
The new adaptation will be spread across seven seasons, equal to the number of books - although there were eight films with the final Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows split into two parts.
The HBO TV show is said to be costing £75million per episode - and the three child actors taking the lead roles have been tipped to land themselves even bigger fortunes than the original stars.
Producers Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod praised the 'wonderful' talent of the three newcomers, when making Tuesday's casting announcement.
They said: 'After an extraordinary search led by casting directors Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, we are delighted to announce we have found our Harry, Hermione, and Ron.
'The talent of these three unique actors is wonderful to behold, and we cannot wait for the world to witness their magic together onscreen.
'We would like to thank all the tens of thousands of children who auditioned. It's been a real pleasure to discover the plethora of young talent out there.'
Rowling released the first Harry Potter novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in 1997, followed by Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets the following year.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was released in 1999, followed by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2000.
Three years later Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix was published and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in 2005.
The final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was released in 2007.
The first movie was released in 2001 and the final one came out in 2011. They played their roles for a decade.