Emma Watson Hanging Up Her Acting Shoes?

After much speculation, Emma Watson is not quitting acting, despite what the internet says. 

By Remy Zerber 
Culture Columnist 

Emma Watson is a British actress who got her start playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series. She has been acting for 22 years, which is a long time. She has gone on to play multiple roles, including Belle from Beauty and the Beast and Meg March from Little Women.  She seemed very happy with her role in the movie because she posted many pictures from the set on her Instagram. However, people are questioning why she only went to the premiere of the movie and did not do any other press for it. There has been some speculation that Emma Watson is quitting acting. Emma Watson is not quitting acting, despite what the internet says. 

Emma Watson has been accused of quitting acting after an article about her was published in The Daily Mail on February 20, 2021. The article claims that she would be quitting acting to focus on life with her boyfriend, Leo Robinton. Robinton is a businessman from Los Angeles, California. Watson recently moved to LA to be with her boyfriend. The rumor is that she is retiring from acting to spend more time with him. However, this is fake news because Watson’s manager said that is not the case. She is just inactive on social media and she has not taken on any new projects lately. She could just be taking a break. She has been in multiple films along with done many things for women’s rights like being “appointed UN Women Goodwill Ambassador in July 2014”  so she could just be relaxing and enjoying some time off to recharge. She has not gone completely silent because she still keeps her book club updated for her fans. Her last interview for her book club’s YouTube channel was in 2019 with Rebecca Solnit. 

Emma Watson and Harry Potter fans were devastated to hear that she might be retiring. Her manager, Jason Weinberg, said that "Emma's social media accounts are dormant but her career isn't," in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. One of her fans wrote that “Emma Watson retiring is something very personal to me,”. “No, I will not be getting over this.” Unfortunately, this is common among child actors. Most Harry Potter actors have considered quitting acting at some point. Daniel Radcliffe considered quitting before he got the role of Harry Potter and Rupert Grint said he considered quitting after his daughter was born. “Emma Watson retiring is so bittersweet,” wrote another fan.” However, she has not put out a statement that she is retiring yet.  Watson has taken breaks from acting before. She took a break from acting before to attend Brown University in 2011. She always comes back to acting after her breaks. Even though Watson might be taking a break from acting, she might still participate in the film industry in other ways like directing, screenwriting, or producing. Fellow actor Bonnie Wright who played Ginny Weasley has directed some films since her time in Harry Potter.

Clearly, the speculation surrounding Emma Watson saying that she quit acting is not true. Just because she does not post on social media as much anymore does not mean she is giving up acting. Emma Watson’s fans are so happy that she is not quitting acting and they will be patient while she takes a break.