Ever since filming wrapped on the eighth and final film in the "Harry Potter" franchise, we've been dying to see where its three leading actors would end up next. But while Daniel Radcliffe is lighting up Broadway, and Rupert Grint is... well, Rupert Grint-ing around somewhere, it's Emma Watson who's far and away the one to watch. Finally finished with all things "Potter"-related, and now wrapping work on "The Perks of Being a Wallflower," Emma took time off from her busy schedule to grace the cover of this month's Vogue, do an ultra-glam, vamped-up photo shoot with Mario Testino and open up about where she's headed next.
The thing that comes through most in Emma's emotional and revealing interview is how much she's still trying to figure things out, even though she's one of the most promising and powerful young people in the entertainment industry.
"I have had no control over my life, I have lived in a complete bubble," she said of the decade that followed her casting in the role of Hermione Granger. "They found me and picked me for the part. And now I’m desperately trying to find my way through it."
She also admitted that the stress of fame and filmmaking took its toll over the course of 10 years. The actress was desperate to have a balanced life, and she wasn't afraid to make demands.
"I was Warner Bros.' pain in the butt," she said, discussing her insistence that the filming schedule be changed so that she could attend university. "I was the one who made life difficult."
Fortunately for Emma, she had the support not just of the studio, but of a "family" of producers, stylists and fellow actors during the intervening years. She especially credited Daniel Radcliffe for being a great leading man, both on-set and off. "He held it all together," she said. "I am very grateful for him."
Now that it's over, though, Emma is looking forward to finding her true calling—and choosing an artistic path that includes not just acting, but her other passions for painting, photography, fashion design and advocacy. What's next? For now, she said she doesn't know. But whatever it is, she's moving ahead at full speed, saying:
"I don’t want the fear of failure to stop me from doing what I really care about."
Are you waiting with bated breath to see where Emma ends up next? Tell us in the comments and on Twitter!
** Hollywood Crush Twitter