Bonnie Wright doesn't speak a word in her first appearance in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Her character Ginny Weasley, is almost part of the scenery on Platform 9 3/4s, and her silence underscores her importance to the largest book and movie franchise in modern cinema.
I recently sat down with Wright in New York where she and the rest of the cast of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince were on a press junket before the U.S. premiere of the sixth film in the series. She was very polite, articulate and exponentially more poised than I was at 18.
We've seen Ginny progress with each film, and now she's almost as important to the series as the "Big 3," what's that been like?
"It's been great. I think when Ginny was possessed by the journal of Voldemort in the second film (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) that was a turning point for her. People had to take her into consideration. And now in this one she's come a long way and has some great scenes. The character is much older.
"David Yates is such a wonderful director for actors. He doesn't just focus on the magic and the computer animation. He's very focused on the acting, and the interplay between the characters."
You've obviously known Daniel (Radcliffe) for most of your life now. How was it doing the romantic scenes with him?
"It was a bit weird, but because I've known him for so long,
we're very comfortable around each other. And I think that familiarity lends
itself to the scenes. It was still very strange."
So, you've been surrounded by all this magical fiction since you were very young - do you even like genre fiction? Do you like all this Twilight stuff?
"No, not really. I mean, the stories and the books are brilliant. And yes, I've seen Twilight, and The Golden Compass. But I'm more interested in films that are more about the characters and dialogue."
This movie is genuinely scary. Was there a definite vibe on set of something a little more adult than previous ones?
"Yes, definitely. There are some pretty violent scenes. The Horcrux cave when Harry fights the Inferi, that is definitely frightening. And I'm glad that David did it that way. These are children's books, but the characters grow and progress, and there has to be some new adult subject matter introduced. It can't be as childish as the earlier movies."
And you're filming the final movie, or movies?
"Yes, I'll be done in September."
And what does life after Potter look like for you?
"I'll be going to film school in London, this fall. I'm very excited."
Congratulations. Will you keep acting?
"Yes, I think so. I'd like to do some more character-driven roles, or anything that I find interesting."
