'LOVE is COMPLICATED…'
Think of child stars and Daniel Radcliffe will undoubtedly spring to mind. Before he had even finished filming the eighth and final film in author JK Rowling’s epic Harry Potter franchise, he was already worth more than Princes William and Harry. The big question was whether he’d ever be able to shrug off the boy wizard’s cloak?
Well, he’s certainly not Harry Potter in his latest film, What If. Instead, he’s a dropout medical student named Wallace. The film follows a fairly typical romcom format: Wallace falls for a girl, Chantry, played by American actress Zoe Kazan. The trouble is, Chantry has a boyfriend. Will they find lasting love? Or will everything turn to worms?
What If is a new departure for Radcliffe, and places him in the type of romantic role previously occupied by Hugh Grant. But while it takes Radcliffe on a different course, he immediately warmed to the script. ‘Just the fact that it was very, very smart and the dialogue was funny, but it didn’t feel contrived funny. It felt how people actually speak.
‘I found it very moving at the end of the film, too, without it trying too hard,’ he continues. ‘It’s just a very simple, sweet story that is quite emotionally affecting as well.
‘Films like this can be quite disposable. They can be entertaining to watch for a bit and then you forget about them. I hope this is the kind of film that sticks with people for longer than 90 minutes.
‘It’s very hard to show or explain why two people connect and fall in love the way they do. In this movie, that’s what it’s about, watching them and finding out why they fall in love with each other… that’s what I love about it.
‘In your normal romcom, it would be me, the girl I fancy and her boyfriend, who is a tool, normally, and you think, “Why is she with him – that makes no sense”. It’s inevitable that she will end up with the nice guy and not the horrible one.’
‘[In this film] she isn’t choosing between a good guy and a bad guy. She’s got a great relationship; she just happens to be falling in love with somebody else. That seems a lot more real.’
But does the film have a deeper message?
‘If there is a point to be made about the film it’s about how silly it is to live in denial of your own feelings,’ says Radcliffe. ‘Love is complicated and not clean or easy a lot of the time, but that doesn’t make it less valid or less true.’
Although the film is set in Canada, fans should rest assured that Radcliffe still sounds very like, well, Radcliffe. Although there was an early attempt to alter his quintessential Englishness.
‘I learnt the part as an American but to be honest, I got out there [Canada] and two days before we started filming, the production company said that I had to do it in English. I think they said you’re not marketable in an accent that people don’t recognise you for, which is bad news for all the other films I’ve done in American accents.
‘I certainly wasn’t going to put 200 people out of work for the sake of an accent. That’s why I’m English in the film, it wasn’t through choice… It was a little annoying because I like doing American accents. It’s fun.’
But has appearing in a romcom made Radcliffe more romantic or changed his views on romance? ‘I was mildly romantic before and I think I’m probably the same amount now. I’ve made vaguely romantic gestures… but I don’t think that’s what a relationship relies upon.’
In What If, the confused couple meet and bond over fridge magnets. It’s a rather unique setting, and although Radcliffe has never met a girl over fridge decorations before, he has had a number of chat-up lines used on him, for which he usually has Harry Potter to blame.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever used a chat-up line on a girl. I have had a few fairly cheesy Harry Potter lines tried on me but I’ve always been quite impressed – it takes some balls to walk up to somebody and say some of the things I’ve had said to me.’
Despite the fact that the last film in the Harry Potter series was filmed in 2011, fans are still debating whether Hermione (played by Emma Watson) should have ended up with Harry instead of Ron (Rupert Grint).
‘I was perfectly happy with the way it all ended,’ he says, wading into the row. ‘I thought she [JK Rowling] did a fine job. I think if anything, Harry and Hermione would have been a bit of a predictable way to go.’
But does he ever sit down to a romantic comedy himself? Well, yes. ‘Arthur, the original film with Dudley Moore and Liza Minnelli, and It Happened One Night, a 1934 film with Clark Gable – it’s honestly one of the most charming romantic comedies I’ve ever seen. But a really stupid one, a film from my teenage years, is Get Over It with Ben Foster and Martin Short. It’s also the reason that I was in love with Kirsten Dunst for most of my teenage years,’ he admits.
‘Also, When Harry Met Sally is up there, it’s a fantastic film. I remember watching it and being stunned by how funny and clever the dialogue was, all without trying too hard to be.’
The film features a rather risqué scene, but then the young Radcliffe is no stranger to controversy in his career choices – in a number of projects he has appeared in the buff. ‘I did three films last year and I got naked in all of them,’ he says. Indeed, in a recent interview, he said that getting naked on stage gets rid of your inhibitions.
Since his Hogwarts days, he has taken on a variety of roles, from the gothic horror of The Woman In Black to the dark thriller, Horns, which is out next month and sees Radcliffe’s character, Ig Perrish, grow a pair of horns while searching for his girlfriend’s killer. But he has yet to play an action hero.
‘I’ve read a few scripts and I can’t really picture myself in an action-movie type of role. One of the things you should know as an actor is what you’re not right for as well as what you are. I get an unusual amount of action in the other stuff I do: Horns, Harry Potter, Frankenstein. So I get my fill of it without having to do the rest of the terrible action movie around it.’
His reference to ‘terrible’ action movies makes me wonder what exactly he finds so awful about them. ‘I just think there are so many effects… sometimes action films can have very homogenised stories and archetypal characters. All the action movies I love, like Die Hard and The Matrix, are ones that have amazing stories and characters who you are rooting for,’ he adds.
But out of the numerous roles – both on stage and screen – that he has taken on since Harry Potter, which would he most like to be remembered for?
‘I feel bad saying this when I should be promoting What If, but I’m going to say Ig from Horns. It’s a crazy movie and one that could find a totally different kind of cult audience – and I’d be very happy with that. ‘If I’m remembered for Harry and Ig, you can’t really get two more disparate characters.’
What If is on general release now. Horns will be in cinemas from 31 October.
Well, he’s certainly not Harry Potter in his latest film, What If. Instead, he’s a dropout medical student named Wallace. The film follows a fairly typical romcom format: Wallace falls for a girl, Chantry, played by American actress Zoe Kazan. The trouble is, Chantry has a boyfriend. Will they find lasting love? Or will everything turn to worms?
What If is a new departure for Radcliffe, and places him in the type of romantic role previously occupied by Hugh Grant. But while it takes Radcliffe on a different course, he immediately warmed to the script. ‘Just the fact that it was very, very smart and the dialogue was funny, but it didn’t feel contrived funny. It felt how people actually speak.
‘I found it very moving at the end of the film, too, without it trying too hard,’ he continues. ‘It’s just a very simple, sweet story that is quite emotionally affecting as well.
‘Films like this can be quite disposable. They can be entertaining to watch for a bit and then you forget about them. I hope this is the kind of film that sticks with people for longer than 90 minutes.
‘It’s very hard to show or explain why two people connect and fall in love the way they do. In this movie, that’s what it’s about, watching them and finding out why they fall in love with each other… that’s what I love about it.
‘In your normal romcom, it would be me, the girl I fancy and her boyfriend, who is a tool, normally, and you think, “Why is she with him – that makes no sense”. It’s inevitable that she will end up with the nice guy and not the horrible one.’
‘[In this film] she isn’t choosing between a good guy and a bad guy. She’s got a great relationship; she just happens to be falling in love with somebody else. That seems a lot more real.’
But does the film have a deeper message?
‘If there is a point to be made about the film it’s about how silly it is to live in denial of your own feelings,’ says Radcliffe. ‘Love is complicated and not clean or easy a lot of the time, but that doesn’t make it less valid or less true.’
Although the film is set in Canada, fans should rest assured that Radcliffe still sounds very like, well, Radcliffe. Although there was an early attempt to alter his quintessential Englishness.
‘I learnt the part as an American but to be honest, I got out there [Canada] and two days before we started filming, the production company said that I had to do it in English. I think they said you’re not marketable in an accent that people don’t recognise you for, which is bad news for all the other films I’ve done in American accents.
‘I certainly wasn’t going to put 200 people out of work for the sake of an accent. That’s why I’m English in the film, it wasn’t through choice… It was a little annoying because I like doing American accents. It’s fun.’
But has appearing in a romcom made Radcliffe more romantic or changed his views on romance? ‘I was mildly romantic before and I think I’m probably the same amount now. I’ve made vaguely romantic gestures… but I don’t think that’s what a relationship relies upon.’
In What If, the confused couple meet and bond over fridge magnets. It’s a rather unique setting, and although Radcliffe has never met a girl over fridge decorations before, he has had a number of chat-up lines used on him, for which he usually has Harry Potter to blame.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever used a chat-up line on a girl. I have had a few fairly cheesy Harry Potter lines tried on me but I’ve always been quite impressed – it takes some balls to walk up to somebody and say some of the things I’ve had said to me.’
Despite the fact that the last film in the Harry Potter series was filmed in 2011, fans are still debating whether Hermione (played by Emma Watson) should have ended up with Harry instead of Ron (Rupert Grint).
‘I was perfectly happy with the way it all ended,’ he says, wading into the row. ‘I thought she [JK Rowling] did a fine job. I think if anything, Harry and Hermione would have been a bit of a predictable way to go.’
But does he ever sit down to a romantic comedy himself? Well, yes. ‘Arthur, the original film with Dudley Moore and Liza Minnelli, and It Happened One Night, a 1934 film with Clark Gable – it’s honestly one of the most charming romantic comedies I’ve ever seen. But a really stupid one, a film from my teenage years, is Get Over It with Ben Foster and Martin Short. It’s also the reason that I was in love with Kirsten Dunst for most of my teenage years,’ he admits.
‘Also, When Harry Met Sally is up there, it’s a fantastic film. I remember watching it and being stunned by how funny and clever the dialogue was, all without trying too hard to be.’
The film features a rather risqué scene, but then the young Radcliffe is no stranger to controversy in his career choices – in a number of projects he has appeared in the buff. ‘I did three films last year and I got naked in all of them,’ he says. Indeed, in a recent interview, he said that getting naked on stage gets rid of your inhibitions.
Since his Hogwarts days, he has taken on a variety of roles, from the gothic horror of The Woman In Black to the dark thriller, Horns, which is out next month and sees Radcliffe’s character, Ig Perrish, grow a pair of horns while searching for his girlfriend’s killer. But he has yet to play an action hero.
‘I’ve read a few scripts and I can’t really picture myself in an action-movie type of role. One of the things you should know as an actor is what you’re not right for as well as what you are. I get an unusual amount of action in the other stuff I do: Horns, Harry Potter, Frankenstein. So I get my fill of it without having to do the rest of the terrible action movie around it.’
His reference to ‘terrible’ action movies makes me wonder what exactly he finds so awful about them. ‘I just think there are so many effects… sometimes action films can have very homogenised stories and archetypal characters. All the action movies I love, like Die Hard and The Matrix, are ones that have amazing stories and characters who you are rooting for,’ he adds.
But out of the numerous roles – both on stage and screen – that he has taken on since Harry Potter, which would he most like to be remembered for?
‘I feel bad saying this when I should be promoting What If, but I’m going to say Ig from Horns. It’s a crazy movie and one that could find a totally different kind of cult audience – and I’d be very happy with that. ‘If I’m remembered for Harry and Ig, you can’t really get two more disparate characters.’
What If is on general release now. Horns will be in cinemas from 31 October.