Matthew Lewis spoke to
Total Film Indonesia on filming both installments of
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows simultaneously, how he defines a hero like Neville Longbottom, getting adjusted back to going out for auditions post-
Harry Potter, and his plans to see his costars after the completion of the series. That, along with a new photo of Matt by Lorenzo Agius, can be seen below.
Quote:
So now we start… can you tell us how making Deathly Hallows Part 1 and Part 2 are different from before?
It was filming both films – not back to back – but simultaneously that was kind of difficult, because you had to remember which part of the film you were at and what was known at the part where you were acting, because we were going from Part 1 to Part 2 and Part 1 again and it was all a bit all over the place and that kind of was confusing. We’ve never had to do that before, so this was the first year that I’ve had no idea what it’s going to look like whatsoever.
You know usually you can get a vague clue, because you’ve been following the script all the way through, but this year I’ve no idea. I don’t remember half of it, because we started what, filming February 2009… so it’s going to be weird. But it was great, you know the crew were fantastic, as they have been every year and we really couldn’t have done it without those guys. We’ve got such a good bunch there, who knew exactly what they had to do, and the schedule could have been a bit of a nightmare if we’d not had such a great bunch of people behind us, so that was all right.
Neville’s so heroic in the end, which is wonderful, so what’s your definition of a hero and who is your hero?
Well, the Leeds Rhinos [his favorite rugby team] were my heroes, last night! I don’t know if you caught the game; they were unbelievable. But no, my real definition of a hero is… obviously, all the people who are in the Middle East right now. You know, those guys are the heroes. I don’t personally know anybody who’s out there, but I know friends of friends that are and it’s shocking. It’s wholly shocking that in the twenty-first century, that sort of thing still goes on. Those guys are out there, doing a job, and they don’t wanna be there, but they are, and I think that’s courage and heroic.
Quote:
He’s also the only one that ends up teaching at Hogwarts. What do you think?
That’s right, he’s the Herbology teacher. That was kind of cool, because I can see Neville being that kind of teacher, who’s not very loud. I saw him, when he’s a teacher, as a sort of Slughorn teacher, I don’t know why. Not with all the celebrities and whatnot but a bit bumbling… but he obviously knew his subject more than anyone else. It’s kind of a nice end for Neville, because I don’t think he was good enough to go on and become an Auror, or whatever, but I think it was quite cool that he became a professor.
Quote:
Is it hard to audition again after all these years in Potter?
It’s been a weird thing that I haven’t had to audition… because I acted from five to eleven, in loads of different stuff, so I was used to auditioning. Then from eleven to twenty-one, I’ve not done anything else, so it’s interesting. The first few auditions, I hated with a passion, I just absolutely hated it, and then after two or three, I started to get back into it, and I quite enjoy that process, now… getting a new script and reading it and getting into a new character, so it’s pretty cool.
Now that you don’t film Potter anymore, do you still see the other cast members?
I had my twenty-first birthday in June and they all came up to Leeds for my twenty-first party, which was really cool and which I didn’t expect at all. I mean, I invited everyone, and I booked a massive room, but I thought, “man, they’re not gonna come… it’s a long way, like two hundred miles, and they’re all really bus…” But everyone came – Dan, Rupert, James and Oliver, Tom, the whole gang and half the crew as well – so it was really nice to see everyone in Leeds, which was really bizarre for me… But, yeah, we try and go to gigs together. If I’m ever in London, for auditions or whatever, you know, I always give them a call and say, “Do you want to go for a drink?” or something like that.
Quote:
Is there anyone you’d particularly like to work with?
I’d love to work with David Yates again. I just thought that he was such a good director for us. I thought he really brought out the best in all of us. He always knew exactly what to say, and he was so talented at evoking the right emotions and stuff in people, and he always had such a vivid image of what he wants before he starts. You know he immersed himself in the film, in the books, and he knows exactly what he wants from every scene, which is always helpful for us. So, yeah, I’d like to work with David Yates again.
Has there any interesting encounters with fans so far?
There was a weird guy and it’s always the weird ones that strike you. There are probably some lovely stories I can tell you, but it’s always the weird guys that pop into your head. To be fair, about 99.9% of fans that I’ve met have been absolutely fantastic, lovely people. But there was this one chap in New York – and my parents were with me in New York – when I was busy doing something. He approached my parents and I don’t think he even asked if it was me, he just said to them… he sort of took my mum’s hand and said, “Thank you for giving birth to him.” My mother found this wholly terrifying, and told me afterwards and I thought that’s pretty weird. I remembered that one.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I has now been released worldwide. Click on the banner below to
order tickets for the film at Fandango. Tickets are also on sale now in the UK; head over to the Harry Potter official
UK Facebook for more information.