Emma Watson Is Down to Be Famous—but She Has Rules

What she is willing to do...and what she's not

By Francesca Bacardi Apr 25, 2017 4:52 PMTags

Emma Watson loves to act, but she also loves her privacy.

Celebrities have often spoken out about the pros and cons of fame, admitting they've subscribed to a life in the public eye but also requesting just a little bit of privacy when it comes to their personal lives. Although it can be difficult given the public's need to know about celebrity living, Watson seems to have figured it out.

Jessica Chastain interviews Watson in the latest issue Interview, and inside the glossy pages the Harry Potter alum opens up about literally growing up in the spotlight. It's not the first time Watson has opened up about her experience with fame and the rules she follows in order to maintain a balanced life. 

photos
Emma Watson's Best Looks

"It's one of the things that I struggle with, because the three of us—Dan[iel Radcliffe], Rupert [Grint], and I—were kids when we got cast in this fairy-tale series, and what happened to us was kind of a fantasy story in itself. Outside of the movies," she tells Chastain. "So the story of my life has been of public interest, which is why I've been so passionate about having a private identity. When I step into a character, people have to be able to suspend their disbelief; they have to be able to divorce me from that girl."

In order for fans to do that, Watson argues, she has to cut them out to an extent.

"And not having everyone know every single intimate detail of my entire life is part of me trying to protect my ability to do my job well," she says.

With so many eyes on her all the time, The Circle actress admits she's become hesitant in life out of "fear" of messing up. "I know that I'm under a different microscope, a certain level of scrutiny, which I find really hard at times," Watson says. "And sometimes the fear of doing things is overwhelming. I get incredibly overwhelmed, and sometimes feel hemmed in by that, afraid of that."

At the end of the day, however, Watson doesn't let her fear control her; she controls her fear. "I know that if I live in that fear, then my life as an artist, as a human being, really, is over," she notes. "Ultimately, it will silence me, and it will silence what is in me—which I have yet to explore and uncover."

Ultimately, Watson took a stand with her fame. She told Vanity Fair's March 2017 issue that she won't take photos with fans anymore—except on a red carpet or fan event—her biggest rule of surviving fame. 

"For me, it's the difference between being able to have a life and not. If someone takes a photograph of me and posts it, within two seconds they've created a marker of exactly where I am within 10 meters," she explained. "They can see what I'm wearing and who I'm with. I just can't give that tracking data."

Instead, Watson is willing to offer her time. "I'll say, 'I will sit here and answer every single Harry Potter fandom question you have but I just can't do a picture.' I have to carefully pick and choose my moment to interact. When am I a celebrity sighting versus when am I going to make someone's freakin' week? Children I don't say no to, for example."

Clearly she has exceptions to her rules.