Actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint were extremely close during the filming of the Harry Potter franchise. The trio started their careers together in the multi-million dollar franchise and grew up together throughout the course of eight films. Even after years, the three still same to share the same friendship and chemistry.
In the final film of the franchise Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part II, Ron and Hermoine played by Grint and Watson share their first on-screen kiss. It was revealed that Watson wanted Radcliffe to be absent from set the day as he would give her a hard time while filming. However, the actor did not back off that easily.
Emma Watson And Rupert Grint’s Kiss Was Awkward
One of the highlights of Deathly Hallows – Part II was the first on-screen kiss that would be shared by Ron and Hermoine, who was played by Rupert Grint and Emma Watson. The possible romance between the two has been hinted at since the first film and fans were waiting for the duo to get mushy on screen for the first time.
While they might be a couple on-screen, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint were far from it in reality and have always maintained the platonic nature of their friendship. Hence, the kiss between the two was dreaded by Watson who knew that it was going to be awkward. During the reunion documentary Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return To Hogwarts (via Entertainment Weekly), Watson said,
“It was meant to be this dramatic make-out. We kept corpsing. We kept laughing…I knew I was gonna have to be the one to make this thing happen because Rupert was not gonna. So, I just had to go for it. I needed, like, momentum into the kiss in order to do it.”
The scene occurs in the film when the duo goes to the Chamber of Secrets to destroy one of Lord Voldemort’s Horcruxes with the fang of a Basilisk. A torrential wave of water fills the chamber as a fail-safe but then disappears after they destroy it. The couple share a kiss right after the life-threatening situation.
Daniel Radcliffe Wanted To Be There For Emma Watson And Rupert Grint’s Kiss
One of the other reasons why lead actress Emma Watson was afraid of the kiss scene was co-actor and star Daniel Radcliffe’s insistence on coming to the sets on the day of filming. Watson reportedly forbade him from coming to the set as he would make it more awkward, which he did not take kindly.
Radcliffe had his first kiss on the sets of Order of the Phoenix, where he shared a scene with actress Katie Leung, who plays Cho Chang. Reportedly, everyone was on set the day it happened, and hence, Radcliffe wanted to return the favor. A behind-the-scenes clip shows Emma Watson telling Radcliffe that he is not allowed to be there on set, to which he screams, “Everyone was there for my kiss”.
In the reunion documentary, Radcliffe admitted that he was being a bit unfair about the ordeal while filming. He apologized to Watson and Rupert Grint. He said,
“I did not make this better because I’ve been told significantly that I was being an absolute d*ck about this and was like, ‘I’m gonna come on set and watch you guys kiss,’. I’m sorry about that, guys.”
The two-part film seemed to be a nightmare for Emma Watson who also had to share a kiss with Radcliffe in the first film in a dreamy sequence. Watson mentioned that her scene with the Harry Potter actor was bizarre.
