Tribute Star Chat 2002
Tribute’s Bonnie Laufer talks to Rupert Grint about playing Ron Weasley again in Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets.
I have to tell you that Ron is my favorite character in the books and in the films and you do not disappoint in The Chamber Of Secrets.
Thanks so much.
What was the biggest difference for you working on The Chamber of Secrets compared to working on the first movie?
There wasn’t much different because we all knew everyone. The crew was the same. It was like going back to school, but a lot more fun.
The evolution of your character Ron is different from the first movie. Tell me about how he had changed in terms of some of the things he had to do.
There were a lot more action scenes and stunts for me to do, like the flying car, which was so much fun! It was really good -- like being on a theme park ride. Plus, Ron’s little sister, Ginny Weasley, is there now so he’s probably a bit more responsible.
More mature!
Yeah.
You have fantastic chemistry with Daniel and Emma. Tell me about the evolution of your friendship and how you guys have developed such a close bond.
We’re really good friends off set as well and we get on really well. We have a good time.
What types of things did you do off set to make things more comfortable and fun?
We just joked around and had a laugh. We had a really good time.
Every kid who sees this film is going to want to know about the slugs that Ron brings up! Gross. Tell me about that.
They were brilliant. They were really nice because there were all of these different flavors of slime.
So you didn’t mind doing it?
No! As many takes as there were, it was good!
I understand that you’re terrified of spiders! So how did you manage to get through shooting the scene in the dark forest with all of those spiders?
It was pretty easy actually because I didn’t need to act scared because I already was! It was a really scary scene for me.
How did director Chris Columbus put you at ease?
He’s really supportive and nice. He would just give us a situation and tell us how we might feel in it. So it was good.
This has been an extraordinary few years in your life, and it’s going to keep going for a few more years. How are you guys handling all of this? Do you ever pinch yourself in disbelief as to what is happening to you?
It’s pretty amazing and quite an incredible experience. I just love it, it’s really good.
How has life changed for you?
I get recognized a lot and people call me Ron. It’s quite weird but I’ve gotten used to it now and it’s quite cool.
You must be very excited to start working on the next film. But what do you do in your down time? What does Rupert Grint do to just be a kid?
Loads of things. I like to watch TV, or play on computer games. That’s cool.
How are your friends treating you?
Exactly how it was before. I was just recently back at school and that was a bit weird. It took a couple of days to really get settled in but everything is back to normal.