Emma Watson’s dad explains why parents of new Harry Potter child stars should be ‘scared’

The three child stars are about to undergo a life-changing experience (Picture: AP)

Emma Watson’s father, Chris, has shared stark words about the pressures of childhood fame as HBO announces the leads of the Harry Potter TV remake.

The reboot of the franchise (this time in TV format) is on everyone’s lips after a slew of casting announcements culminated in the literary Golden Trio.

Formerly played by Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma over the course of eight movies in the 2000s, the fresh cast will star Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton as Hermione, and Alastair Stout as Ron.

The three child actors – who beat out 30,000 other children for the coveted spots – have been flung into a whole new level of stardom last experienced by Emma, Rupert and Daniel, who are all now in their 30s.

In an era of social media, and with more eyes than ever on the franchise and how this controversial remake will fare, Chris reflected on how tough it was to handle the pressure during Emma’s rise to fame.

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. While there are many upsides, nothing is perfect.

“If [parents of the new Harry Potter cast] want to talk to someone who’s been through this extraordinary experience, I would be more than happy to talk to them.”Emma Watson’s father, Chris Watson, knew his daughter was a star when she came on stage in a school musical. Times Radio (@TimesRadio) May 30, 2025 Emma Watson’s father shared the downsides of childhood fame and offered to share his advice to the new Harry Potter cast (Picture: Getty)

‘You have to recognise there are going to be a whole load of downsides, some of them you couldn’t have imagined.

He added that ‘normal life continued as far as possible’ for a way to protect her and ‘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.’

Before concluding: ‘If [parents of the new Harry Potter cast] want to talk to someone who’s been through this extraordinary experience, I would be more than happy to talk to them.’

It’s no secret that becoming the most recognised young actors in the world took its toll on the original three actors with the Little Women star previously speaking about her desire to exit the franchise halfway through.

During one interview, she recalled the experience as ‘very foggy’.

The original trio have been candid about the tough experience of early fame (Picture: Warner Bros)

Meanwhile, Daniel has been candid about his journey with sobriety after he started drinking during the filming of the movies.

The actors who have signed up for the HBO series – including Nick Frost as Hagrid, John Lithgow as Dumbledore and Paapa Essiedu as Professor Snape – are already under immense scrutiny.

TV writer Asyia Iftikhar on her worries about the new Harry Potter cast

 I’m truly concerned about what will happen to the new Harry, Ron, and Hermione, plucked from childhood and obscurity and flung into stardom.

Not only will this trio of unknown actors star in what will surely become one of the most heavily scrutinised TV shows this decade, but all under the creative jurisdiction of someone who has, in my view, opposed the rights of a marginalised community. 

We have already seen the dangers this level of fame can create, even before the author of the series descended into Twitter troll status

There are all the elements for disaster waiting to happen – and while, for me, schadenfreude is tempting given Rowling’s behaviour – I’m worried that these innocent children will be the collateral damage. 

Not least because the author behind Harry Potter, JK Rowling, has been slammed by many for her critical views of the transgender community, prompting calls to boycott the show.

In an interview with The Times, Lithgow said: ‘I thought, why is this a factor at all? I wonder how JK Rowling has absorbed it. I suppose at a certain point I’ll meet her and I’m curious to talk to her.’

Dumbledore star John Lithgow has already spoken about the backlash he has faced (Picture: Getty)

Meanwhile, Nick is remaining optimistic as he spoke about his excitement to step into the role in a recent chat.

‘I’ve gone in to do head sculpts and have your hand stand and stuff, and they say, “Oh, have a look at this.” And you’re like, “Wow. That’s the coolest thing.”

‘I love films. I’ve loved cinema my whole life, so to be part of that universe now and that they’re showing me, like, a dancing mushroom, it’s like, “That is so cool!’ he said.

After the announcement of Harry, Ron and Hermione’s casting, Rowling tweeted: ‘All three are wonderful. I couldn’t be happier.’

In a statement, executive producers Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod 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.’

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