Emma Watson Updates: Emma Watson new interview in Girl's Life US (July 2004)

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Gl wanted to learn more about Daniel, who plays Harry Potter for the third time in The Prisoner of Azkaban. And while we were at it, we got Emma and Rupert on the line. Those two have the roles of Hermione and Ron. But you already knew that.

Who is Emma Watson?

Emma is a bit more chatty than Daniel, which we like. She's open and upbeat - a totally normal 13-year-old, who wishes she had an invisibility cloak to sneak into a Red Hot Chili Peppers Concert at the London Arena.

Besides rocking out, Emma likes to read - and she's excited about recommending her favorites. "The last good book I read, and I've been raving about it everywhere, was Malorie Blackman, Noughts and Crosses. Best book in the world. But so sad at the ending. Anyway, the other two, Knife Edge and An Eye for An Eye, they're so good, the Malorie Blackman series."

And, yes, she reads the Harry Potter books, The Prisoner of Azkaban, of course, being the one on which the most recent movie is based. "I was already halfway through it when I began filming, so I was a massive fan even before we started. I was really excited about the third one - it's my favorite book, it's my favorite script, it's my favorite part for Hermione. I think it's going to be the best one."

The first two Harry Potter films - The Sorcerer's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - raked in nearly $2 billion at box offices around the world, and instant acclaim and fame for its young stars. Emma is getting used to the recognition and fast adjusting to her celebrity status. "I suppose the best thing that's ever happened to me was, um, this completely stunned me, a guy asked me to sign a 50-pound note. I was absolutely flabbergasted, I couldn't believe it. I was like, 'You know I can put this on paper if you'd like,' and he was like, 'Nope, no." I was like, 'Whoaaah!'

The most glamorous thing that's happened to me ever, I was doing the Jay Leno show, and we were late for the [Harry Potter] premiere in Los Angeles. So a helicopter picked me uo and took me to the premiere. You should have seen my face - I was over the moon!" Perhaps not as over the moon as she was when she met Brad Pitt, who was at London's Chapman Studios, where HP is shot. "I was, aw God, you shoulda seen me. I was just a wreck. It was amazing."

Besides bumping into leading men and getting flown in by helicopter for red-carpet events, being a star also means having a dressing room - and Emma's is the most elaborately decorated on the HP set. "When I first came into it, it wasn't the nicest thing I'd ever seen. It was just like big white walls, um, plain carpet. I had to do something about it, so I asked if I could paint it. So I painted one of the walls in a massive painting of everything I like. So I've got on it, I've got fashion bags, I've got my favorite car, which is a Mini, I've got ice cream, I've got chocolate, it's just covered. It's really big and really colorful and really happy, so that's cool. And I bought lots of posters and yeah, it's a really bright room. And on my door, I've got a massive star, which is really cool."

Emma is far from being a demanding celeb, but there are certain items she doesn't like to be without during filming. "I'm really picky about my shampoo and conditioner, and I must have a hair dryer with me 'cause it really annoys me when I have my hair wet. Oh, I have to have my mobile phone - I feel lost without it - lip gloss, definitely, hmm, what else? Oh, my teddy bear, definitely. It's actually a rabbit, called Bunnykins. Oh, I have a ridiculous eccentric pair of slippers I got for Christmas, by Roxy - and they're bright pink and fluffy, just brilliant, and I love them."

The role of Hermione in The Sorcerer's Stone was Emma's first professional acting job, and she hasn't forgotten her humble beginnings before that big break. She's a perfect example of what the payoff can be if you hone your acting chops by landing parts in school plays. "My first play, was Arthur: The Young Years, which is a really English play about the Knights of the Round Table. I played Morgan la Faye, who is, surprisingly enough, a witch. My first ever sort of dramatic thing I did was when I was at primary school. We had to recite poems, and we did poetry a lot. I won something called the Daisy Pratt Poetry Competition, which at the time, I was really pleased about." Not bad, moving up from the Daisy Pratt to winner of the AOL Award for Best Supporting Actress for Chamber of Secrets.

Emma's somewhat of a star athlete, too. She plays field hockey, tennis and rounders, which is kinda the English version of baseball. "Field hockey is one of my favorites. I love netball [basketball]. I love athletics." Emma rattles off her sporty aspirations and all the other things she wants out of life: "I have so many ambitions. I would like to play hockey for England - that would be good. I've love to win an Oscar, but I dunno when that will happen. I want to have seen all the world, pretty much every country, just because I love seeing different places. So many things I want, lots of things. Health, be happy, good jobs, nice marriage, kids."

She's got it going on, right? But, as it turns out, even international fame doesn't help when it comes to interfacing with the opposite sex. "I try, but it's so hard. Guts are just, ugh, especially teen-age boys - it's just one-word answers to every question you give them. They're annoying. It's awful. You'd think that because I'm an actress, I coud get away with it, but no. It anyone thinks I'm like that, no, especially around boys. I get so stressed out. I'm like any other teenager, I really am. I'm far from perfect. I have massive spots in the middle of my nose."

Emma fares much better, at least conversationally, with her female pals - a close-knit group of four or five she kicks it with when filming wraps. "If we're outside school, we go to the center of Oxford and watch a film. We hang out in Starbucks. We go and choose CDs, talk, go to each other's houses, normal girly stuff."

Her favorite pig-out food is McCoy's Salt & Malt Vinegar chips. "One of my bad things is a craving for crumpets. Crumpets and muffins, with chocolate spread. That's my favorite."

Oh, and one more thing. "I make great pancakes."

Behind the magic

We got the HP cast to spill about some of the stuff that happened on set during filming.

EVEN EMMA FORGETS HER LINES. "The Prisoner of Azkaban has really hard lines to say, complicated words." Emma has a favorite line, one after Hermione and Ron get into and argument and she says, "Do you think you can come up with another clever wat to get us killed?" before slamming the door.

THE KIDS DO SOME OF THEIR OWN STUNTS. "I get thrown around by the Womping Willow tree. Chased by werewolves, Dementors, the lot," Emma tells us. "There's a lot of Quidditch in the rain," Daniel says. "They sprayed me down before each shot, then sprayed tain on my during the shot. Quidditch can be quite exhausting." He's probably hooked to a harness, but Daniel's not telling: "I can't say. It'll ruin the magic."

THE BOYS OUTNUMBER THE GIRL. "Yeah, Rupert and Daniel are just horrible to me all the time," Emma jokes. "Sometimes, you crave female company. My chaperone looks after me when I'm on set - I can talk to her."

EMMA HAS AN ON-SET EMBARASSING MOMENT. The kids have those Hollywood chairs with their names of them. "They're kind of flimsy, and mine had one of its legs on an electrical wire. I sat down, and it felt backward. My legs were up in the air like a chicken, and everyone was laughing at me. It took me aged to get out of the chair. Really, really embarassing."

Who is Rupert Grint?

You know how Emma complains about teenage boys having one-word answers to every question? That's Rupert! He's so shy, in fact, that he requested Emma be on the phone when we spoke with him. Hey, why not?

Are you treated differently in school?

RG: Not really.

EW: I started a brand new school in February. After the first couple days, people take second looks and are a bit funny, But then they realize you're a normal person and kinda forget about it.

Are you guys already cast for the remaining sequels?

EW: I think we're both playing in the fourth one.

Is it difficult to film so many months out of the year?

EW: Just being away from friends and family.

RG: Yeah.

Are you a conscientious student?

RG: I'm all right. I've never really enjoyed school so much, either.

EW: I'm not as work-oriented and teacher-praising.

Do you guys socialize off-screen?

EW: We see each other so much, every day for like a year, that the time we do get off we just want some space. But we do get along really well.

RG: Yeah.

Do you feel the fame has put any strain on your life?