You might assume that the man behind Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe, has more magical endeavors than Googling himself, but, surprise, he's just as down-to-earth as the rest of us muggles. In a refreshingly hilarious candid interview, the actor behind the lightning-scarred Boy Who Lived admitted to searching his name on the internet and venturing into the enchanting world of online fandom.
Radcliffe, who is currently performing in the Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along (a movie adaptation is also in the works), took a seat for a lie detector test alongside fellow stars Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. They questioned each other about the project and their careers, and, as it turns out, he's seen some saucy Potter fan content.
Jonathan Groff inquired about the Guns Akimbo actor's online search habits in the Vanity Fair interview, and there was no vanishing act from the Potter star as he admitted to Googling himself. But the real surprise here isn't your typical vanity internet search; it's the Beast of Burden performer's knowledge of the–let’s say, intriguing–world of fanfiction, particularly the realm of Draco and Harry shipping. He candidly revealed:
I’m obviously aware there’s a lot of like shipping of Harry and Draco as characters together. So, I’ve read some of that.
Harry and Draco shipping may sound strange to some, but the fan stories get so much weirder. According to the Swiss Army Man star, the most bizarre stories he has read about himself include the SAS (The Special Air Service), beer brewing monks, and mirror reading. Or as he tells it:
In terms of stories about me, the weirdest story I’ve read about myself… That I had the SAS walk my dogs, that I had special beer brewers for myself by monks in a monastery in Belgium. That I used to get my assistant to hold my scripts in the mirror so I could read them while I was having makeup done. Even though that doesn’t make fucking sense, ‘cause I wouldn’t be able to read mirror writing. And yeah, there’s a long list.
Sure, the “mirror writing” story seems absurd, but can we all agree that beer brewed by monastery monks sounds delightful?
However, during the lie detector test, there was a downer moment for fans hoping to see Daniel as Wolverine in any upcoming Marvel movies. Lindsay Mendez questioned him about those Wolverine rumors and whether he got in shape for the role. Radcliffe chuckled at the question before revealing that he got buff because he's obsessive and he comes from a family of fitness fanatics. As he explained:
I got buff because I am obsessive, and I want to… You've seen my parents, they're like insane fitness people. So that's just been passed on. But no. No Wolverine. Flattered, but no.
While the Miracle Workers vet might not be donning yellow and blue spandex and joining the X-Men anytime soon, and he has been doing fewer movies, the actor remains busy. Radcliffe hasn’t only retaken to the stage in Merrily, but he has also recently become a father. Despite the Goblet of Fire actor's enduring association with his Wizarding World legacy, he has predominantly avoided franchise roles in recent years, so stepping into an upcoming superhero movie would signify a significant departure for the versatile actor. But if that doesn’t work out, maybe he can bring some of that spicy fan fic to the big screen.
Opening night for Merrily We Roll Along was October 10. Though there are no movie commitments for Daniel Radcliffe on the 2023 movie schedule, he will be hitting the Broadway stage eight times a week for the foreseeable future.
