Emma Watson has opened up about why she is on a self-imposed break from acting that has so far lasted four years — and whether or not she could be tempted to return.
Paris-born Watson, 33, shot to fame as a child star playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films for 10 years.
Since then, she has started in blockbusters including Disney’s Beauty and the Beast live-action remake, Perks of Being A Wall Flower and The Bling Ring.
She was last seen on screen in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women back in 2019 and she says the experience made her reevaluate the direction in which her life was going.
“I wasn’t very happy if I’m being honest. I think I felt a bit caged,” she said in an interview with the Financial Times.
“The thing I found really hard was that I had to go out and sell something that I really didn’t have very much control over.
“To stand in front of a film and have every journalist be able to say, ‘How does this align with your viewpoint?’”
She added: “It was very difficult to have to be the face and the spokesperson for things where I didn’t get to be involved in the process.”
That does not mean to say she will never step in front of a camera again. Watson said she would be open to the idea if the role was “right”.
She explained she did not want to “fracture herself into different faces and people”, adding: “I don’t want to switch into robot mode any more.”
