How does this film compare to the others? It seems like there will be much more action in this one than in some of the previous ones.
Emma: It’s been very intense. It’s been a difficult shoot, almost every scene has been demanding in one way or another, whether it’s because of the action or because it involves a very intense moment on an emotional level. It’s been great because it’s really made me push myself to the limit and has given me the opportunity to show what I can do, and I’ve truly enjoyed it.

What do you think are the three most memorable moments of these past ten years?
Emma: The Yule Ball in Goblet of Fire was impressive. I’ll always remember that, for the costumes and the whole show. It’s a moment in Hermione’s life in which she breaks out of her shell and becomes a young woman. Another would be auditioning for the role of Hermione and being told that I had gotten the part. We did a screening for the movie in Radio City Hall in New York, to which 5,000 people showed up, and I remember getting up on stage and just seeing everyone with flashes, that was the moment when I knew how big and important the movies and what we’ve done are. I found out how big everything was, so I remember that quite well. I mean, there are many moments to remember… those are just three.

You were only ten years old or so when all of a sudden you became famous, and you’ve been famous since, but you seem to be well-grounded. How have you managed this?
Emma: I think that continuing to assist school has helped a lot because I have a life and friends outside the film industry, which is an industry where there is a lot of craziness, to be honest. [Laughs] And I don’t know, I guess it’s partly my education, partly my parents, and partly my personality. I don’t know, I think it’s been a good thing that we didn’t make these films in Hollywood. We’ve made them in England, we’ve made them in Watford, at the Leavesdon Studios, and we’ve really been in our own little bubble, so in a certain way we’ve had a very normal life, which I think has helped.

Since you started college, coming from the world of cinema, do you think that the way you see yourself has changed?
That’s really interesting. I guess, in a certain way, it gives you perspective on what you do, which helps. Sometimes when you’re in it, everything just seems like a blur, and to be able to get away from it and look at it with a certain perspective from a different, I feel more grounded and with a better perspective on my own life. And yeah, it’s very good.

How is it living in the U.S.? What do you miss from England?
Emma: As funny as this sounds, the weather. I miss the gray skies sometimes. In America I have the feeling that I have to be wearing sunglasses all the time. [Laughs]

And what do you like to do in your spare time, when you’re not acting or studying?
Emma: I like to watch movies, to read, to sleep. Sleep is great. [Laughs] I like to play sports, hang out with my friends, go out to dinner. I love food and cooking.

What’s your culinary specialty?
Emma: Baked beans on toast. I’m very good at that.

Is that a specialty?
Emma: No, not really. [Laughs] But my roasted/grilled peppers are quite good. What else can I make? My mackerel pate is also quite good.

You’ve become a fashion icon. How would you describe your fashion sense?
Emma: I think it’s very simple. I’m not a big fan of jewelry or accessories. I think that’s something very French, actually. My French influence probably has something to do with it. It’s not all defined, I’m still experimenting, but I usually like something classic.

I try not to pay attention to trends for the most part, but rather focus on what I like. I like to show myself, instead of following trends too much, so I’m not a fashion victim, to put it like that. I’m not a rock star, so I don’t try to dress that way. I just simply choose for myself what makes me feel comfortable.

When do you feel the most pretty?
Emma: I feel prettier when I’m wearing something very simple, that has a nice cut and seems sort of underestimated. I think that’s when I feel pretty.

Have you made any contributions to your costumes on Harry Potter?
Emma: Well, I get on great with the [costume director?], we have a very extensive relationship and we both love fashion, so we work together. It’s a collaboration, and it’s very nice.

It must have been incredible for you that Burberry’s sales have skyrocketed since you started working with them. How does that make you feel?
Emma: Yes! It’s a huge compliment! It’s amazing. To be honest, it’s been a big surprise. [Laughs] I’m very amazed that things have worked out that way.

You’ve been working with Dan Radcliffe and Rupert Grint for the past ten years. How have they changed over time? What are the differences with respect to the past?
Emma: Well, it’s funny because they’ve both gone in completely opposite directions. When we started, Rupert was very open, very talkative, sure of himself, whereas Dan was quiet, the shy guy. I remember the first press conference we did, he was overwhelmed by it all, and now they’ve both gone in opposite directions. [Laughs]

Dan, you can’t make him be quiet, he just wants to talk about the movie, he has this incredible energy, he’s a big ball of… telling jokes all the time, he’s a very outgoing guy. Rupert has become really quiet. He’s much more reserved now, which is funny. Really they’ve gone from one extreme to the other, I guess. But they are still both charming, and as people have not changed much, which is good.

Talking about them again, what do they mean for you? Do you feel you are friends, family almost?
Emma: I think we are like a family, yes. I think we’re like brothers and sister.

How do you think Hermione has changed Emma Watson?
Emma: I’m sure that she has, but I’m sure she’s done it unconsciously. In fact, we’re so alike in reality that sometimes it’s difficult to make out what she’s influenced in me and what I’ve influenced in her.

In this last film, you’re sort of this heroine in action. What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to do?
Emma: There’s this really short scene in which I had to get on a broomstick. I had never done it before, and it’s so uncomfortable, that I have no idea how Dan has been able to do it all these years, no idea. I don’t know how anybody can do it, you end up sore. [Laughs] It’s the most painful and uncomfortable experience I’ve had, so probably that’s it. But I guess also a lot of the running scenes, running from a snake or whatever, and I’ve learned throughout filming that I always give everything in the first take.

Were you nervous before the love scene with Ron?
Emma: Yes, I was somewhat nervous. The thing is that I think that David Heyman didn’t want us to be very nervous, so he told us just one day in advance that we were going to be shooting it. He sort of just threw it at us, so we didn’t have much time to think about it, which helped in a certain way, but also caused some panic. But I think it turned out alright in the end.

Now that the saga is finishing, how do you see your future as an actress?
Emma: I guess I just want to continue to make films that are on the same level and have the same quality as Harry Potter. They don’t have to have the same budget or the same number of fans, but if I make them, I’d like to make films that have the same standards, the same quality, and I think that in itself, that is a huge challenge.

What kind of movies do you like to watch?
Well, the thing is that when I’m shooting, especially when I’ve been shooting these films, I find it emotionally draining, so the last thing I want to do at the end of the day is to go home and watch a movie that is emotionally and intellectually demanding. So when I like to relax, I watch Sex and the City, to be quite honest. [Laughs] Or romantic comedies, or Gossip Girl every once in a while. I mean, I watch tons of movies and obviously I watch intellectually stimulating movies as well, but not all the time.

You are a great role model for young girls. How do you feel about that?
Emma: It’d be extremely flattering if I were. I don’t think about it too much. I’m just being myself, and I’m being honest with myself, and if that’s something that people admire, then it’s wonderful and flattering, but I’m not trying to consciously be a role model.

Ten years, it’s the end of an era, correct?
Tom: It is, it really is. It’s been a long time since they contacted us when were kids. It’s really strange because I was 12, 13 years old when they chose me for the role, and now I’m 22. I don’t feel like it’s over, though, not until the last two films are released to the public. But yes, it’s very sad to say goodbye.

Giving life to one of the villains of the saga, do you think there is a bit of good left in Draco, something that deserves to be saved?
Tom: Yes, yes, I think so, definitely. He’s actually a good guy, he just has some terrible influences and is a victim of impressive circumstances. I think that, given a different opportunity he’d be a completely different person, but unfortunately given who he is and who his parents are, he’s forced to take a long journey down a one-way road. I don’t think he’s completely bad on the inside.

How have you seen the character evolve from being a school bully to one of the biggest villain of the films?
Tom: It’s been great. Every year he’s taken on more and more intensity, and his role as a bully has been turning more and more evil. And in the6th one they turned the tables on him and we saw a vulnerability we had never seen in the character and an explanation for his actions. You understand what’s going on wrong at home, with his parents, who don’t make things particularly easy for him. It’s great having a developmental arc like that in a character, where you don’t have to interpret just one record. I think he has a complete transformation throughout the last films, where it seems like he wants to become a villain, although deep down he doesn’t quite want to.

In the sixth film we actually see him doubting what he had to do.
Tom: Completely, he didn’t know if he wanted to do it or not. And I think that, deep down, the answer is no. It’s not in his nature to be a true villain. And I don’t think he’ll ever completely be a villain.

What is your opinion about the seventh film?
Tom: I’m truly excited about the last two films because I think they are going to be the best of the franchise because of the story and because of the concept. I think Jo really saved the best for last. It’s grown a lot and there’s nothing childish about the content of what happens. There are a bunch of deaths, as you know, and also death as a concept. It’s very interesting, the battles, death, love, romance. I think it’s going to turn out quite interesting for a new audience, as well as for those that were already followers.

What is your favorite scene of this first part?
Tom: Well, there’s been some good material, so it’s difficult to pick just one scene, and I’ve not seen the films, so I don’t know what’s been put in one film or the other. Or what’s been cut out altogether. But, with luck, there’s one fantastic scene at Malfoy Manor and we see the house and its residents for the first time and all the bad guys in one room, with Voldemort, Bellatrix, the Malfoys… very intense.

Have you done your own stunts in the film?
Tom: Whenever I’ve been able to. There’s a lot of action in both films, a lot of explosions, a lot of stuff on fire. It’s not something we were used to and the team of specialists has done a great job. I guess I can say that I’ve done some stunts, if they can be called stunts, where they put you in a harness and they raise you up, or running from fire.

And how has it been filming two huge films at once?
Tom: I think it’s quite brave/daring to film both at once. It’s been tough work, especially for Daniel Radcliffe and David Yates, who were there every day. For me it’s been less difficult because I’d come and go throughout filming, so it hasn’t been as exhausting. But I think it’s been exceptional for both of them and anybody else who’s been there every day. An incredible feat. In any case, I don’t think that the film would have worked as just one, I don’t think that it would have turned out good if they had tried putting everything into just one film.

Has it been difficult growing up surrounded by all this pressure? The fans, the people, the press…
Tom: At times, it has been. But I’ve been incredibly lucky and I’ve had a normal childhood. I went to school between films, I never left school, which is very important to me. I’ve always had the same friends. I’ve never been in a situation where fans attacked me, like when we’ve gone to premieres and such. I walk throughout London every day, and nobody tells me anything. The hair, the change of my hair color has done it all. When I’ve dyed it for the films, people do recognize me, but without that…

You’ve started a music label, and one of your colleagues from Harry Potter, Matthew Lewis, has a band and is going to work with you. Is that one of the reasons for having your own label, to be able to work with the people you’ve spent so much time with?
Tom: The truth is, it is. Matt has a band, and once I started working with the idea of making a music label, we said, “We have to work together.” I think we’re in a privileged position in which we can star things, create them. We don’t have to wait. Whether it be music, screenplays or ideas, we can make them happen. So I think that we should take advantage of this situation and make it happen while we can. Get involved in as many projects as we can. And it’s always great to stay in contact with everybody, and Matt is a great guy.

And regarding Rise of the Apes, what can you tell us? It’s one of the great science fiction film projects for next year.
Tom: Yeah, I know. It’s amazing. It’s one of the best screenplays I’ve read in my life. I’m very excited about the project, really. I’ve been shooting for four weeks and I got back to London yesterday. What can I tell you? [Laughs] all I can say is that it’s a prequel, not a remake, a completely new screenplay. My character works in an investigation center, and I don’t have to tell you that he’s not particularly one of the nicest guys in the world. He’s very different from Draco, but still he’s not very pleasant fellow.