Why did Emma Watson retire from acting?

May 2, 2023

“What I found very difficult was having to go and sell something that I had little control over,” the “Harry Potter” alum said.

Emma Watson has admitted she was ‘not very happy’ at the height of her career.

The “Harry Potter” alum, who began acting at age 10, hasn’t appeared on screen since 2019’s “Little Women,” directed by Greta Gerwig. In a new interview, Watson said she feels “caged” in her career Financial Times.

“I wasn’t too happy to be honest,” Watson said. “I think I felt a little caged. The thing that was really hard for me was having to go and sell something that I didn’t have a lot of control over. To stand in front of a film and any journalist can say, “How does this fit your point of view?” It was very difficult to be his face and spokesperson for things that I couldn’t be a part of in the process.”

Watson continued: “I was held accountable in a way that I started to find really frustrating because I didn’t have a voice, I didn’t have a say. And I started to realize that I just wanted to be in front of things where, if someone gave me a gift, I could say without hating myself: “Yeah, I fucked up. it was my decision, I should have done better.”

Instead, Watson realized his “seemingly unattainable” dream of directing. She wrote and directed a Prada campaign and is next shooting a music video for an unnamed male artist.

“People always told me I should direct and produce, even when I was in Potter,” Watson said. “I was worried that it was just technical, not creative, and I couldn’t bring what I think is probably my ability. It was only (my brother) Alex coming to me with this and friends asking for favors—”I’ve got to take a picture” or “I’ll make a video”—that made me realize that I actually know quite a bit. Being a director seemed out of reach. I guess I didn’t have confidence in that. I know it seems strange. I mean, I grew up on a movie set.”

Last month, Watson opened on Instagram in a rare personal post about how he “walked out of my life” as he turns away from acting.

Watson is also launching an MA in Creative Writing at the University of Oxford. Confirmed to star in a film set in early 2024, he assured that “yes, absolutely” he would return to acting for good.

“But I’m happy to sit back and wait for the next right thing,” Watson added. “I love what I do. Finding a way to not have to push myself into different faces and people. And I just don’t want to go into robot mode anymore. Does that make sense?”

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