Emma Watson opened up about stepping back from acting and explained that when she was surrounded by all those famous people at the height of her career, she realized that no level of success would make her happy unless she was true to herself.
In an interview for British Vogue, the 33-year-old actress said her new-found freedom would not have been possible if she’d stayed in front of the camera and on the big screen.
“I’m just so glad that I did,” Watson told the outlet of taking a break. “Because I have this feeling of having my own voice and creative space and sovereignty in some way that I don’t think I did before—more autonomy.”
“I’m so glad that I allowed things to be messy for a minute and to really allow myself to not know [what’s next], because the knowing that I’ve come to, I wouldn’t trade that for anything,” she added.
Forever the month of fresh starts and new beginnings, the January 2024 issue of #BritishVogue is focused on a re-energised commitment to mindful fashion. So who better to begin proceedings with than actor and activist #EmmaWatson. Read about her personal and professional reset… pic.twitter.com/T8rmdKTBYK
— British Vogue (@BritishVogue) December 14, 2023
“I get a front row seat [with] some of the most successful, beautiful, incredible people in the world,” Emma said of being part of Hollywood. “And when you have that seat it becomes very, very clear that there is just absolutely no level of success that will make you in any way happy or content if you do not like who you are or enjoy what you’re doing when no one’s watching.”
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Watson — who became a world-wide celebrity after landing the role of Hermoine Granger in the “Harry Potter” franchise at 10-years-old — has mostly stepped away from acting following her appearance in the 2019 “Little Women” remake.
Earlier this year, the actress said she left Hollywood because she “wasn’t very happy.”
“I think I felt a bit caged,” Watson said. “The thing I found really hard was that I had to go out and sell something that I really didn’t have very much control over. … It was very difficult to have to be the face and the spokesperson for things where I didn’t get to be involved in the process.”
“I was held accountable in a way that I began to find really frustrating, because I didn’t have a voice, I didn’t have a say,” she added. “And I started to realize that I only wanted to stand in front of things where if someone was going to give me flak about it, I could say, in a way that didn’t make me hate myself, ‘Yes, I screwed up, it was my decision, I should have done better.'”
She has since tried her hand at directing, E! News noted.
Related: ‘I Wasn’t Very Happy’: ‘Harry Potter’ Darling Explains Long Absence From Hollywood