Harry Potter's Rupert Grint wants to put Ron Weasley behind him. The actor gave 10 years, including a significant amount of his childhood, to J.K. Rowling's lovable red-headed oaf in the $10 billion-earning franchise.
It has been seven years since Rupert Grint played the wizard alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson in the series closer, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. Could it be time for the actor to watch himself in his most iconic role? While the actor has revisited his early work in the franchise, he won't be bingeing all the Harry Potter movies anytime soon. In his words:
I think those early ones are OK. More time has passed. I can detach myself a bit more from that kid. I did see Harry Potter and the [Sorcerer's] Stone not long ago, for the first time since the premiere, and I actually enjoyed looking back. But the more recent ones I definitely couldn't do. I could probably go up to [third film] Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
As Rupert Grint has slowly wiggled his way back into the spotlight for his recent roles in television shows such as Sick Note, Snatch, and The ABC Murders, he's been open about his long history as the star of the Harry Potter films.
It doesn't sound like it was easy. Rupert Grint can barely remember his life before he nabbed the role at 10-years-old. He's said that the more he played Ron, the more he started disappearing into the role, finding it hard to separate himself from the character.
His difficulty with watching the films after Prisoner of Azkaban makes sense, as the 30-year-old actor has talked about how for the first few films he felt like he was living the dream as a Harry Potter star -- he was a huge fan of the books when he auditioned. However, as he got older and had to do red carpets and press tours, the responsibility of the character started to weigh on him.
Rupert Grint almost quit the franchise midway through the fourth film, Goblet of Fire, but thankfully pushed on. He also contemplated giving up acting all together after the franchise was over and done with.
The actor is now working hard to differentiate himself from his iconic role, in such projects as his recent BBC1 television show The ABC Murders and in M. Night Shyamalan's upcoming Apple psychological-thriller series.
But no matter what he does, it's all about Harry Potter. In a recent interview with Radio Times about the BBC1 series starring John Malkovich, talk of the wizarding world inevitably found its way to the center of the conversation.
While the franchise has moved forward with the Fantastic Beasts films, Rupert Grint will perhaps always be remembered best as Ron Weasley.
