It has been more than a decade since we last saw Emma Watson as Hermoine Granger in Harry Potter. While Potterheads have since struggled to see the actress as anything other than Hermoine, the actress herself has struggled to break her bonds with her most iconic character as well. Hence, to feel more like herself and shed the Hermoine persona, Watson starred in the 2012 critically acclaimed film opposite Ezra Miller.

Emma Watson spoke up about her first acting experience after Harry Potter

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is one of the most acclaimed coming-of-age stories, and the movie has done it justice with its amazing storyline and cast. While Emma Watson did a tremendous job in the film, it was also a movie she struggled with a lot.

Emma Watson Struggled While Starring In Ezra Miller Starrer

The Perks of Being a Wallflower was Watson’s first film after Harry Potter

Emma Watson is a Briton and played the iconic character Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films, a world of wizardry set in Britain as well. After having played a British character and being British herself, starring as an American teenager was exceptionally hard for her. Not only did she struggle with the accent, but Watson was also not aware of how the American school system worked.

“I was like, ‘I’ve got to do an American accent and I don’t know anything about being at an American school’, so I started freaking out and making these crazy notes and emailing the director at three in the morning going, ‘What does this mean?’ <…>  my accent? I was really nervous. I think it sounded terrible!” 

Being a perfectionist, the Beauty and the Beast star tried her very best to nail the typical American teenager role in the Ezra Miller starrer, The Perks of Being A Wallflower.

Emma Watson Was Super Stressed While Filming

Emma Watson struggled to play the role of an American teenager

Not only did she not know the American lifestyle, the accent, or the American high school experience, but Emma Watson had also not read the classic. Based on the 1999 book by Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a famous American classic. However, Watson had never come across the book until she was offered the opportunity to star in the film adaptation.

Hence she felt stressed and pressured, especially since her friends won’t stop nagging her about it.

“My American friends berated me. They couldn’t believe I hadn’t read it and I realized there’s this amazing cult following of people that really care about it — so, again putting a lot of pressure on myself to get it right.”

While the film wasn’t a record-breaker, it did prove Emma Watson’s prowess as an actor and helped her age out of her Harry Potter image. Furthermore, even with all the struggles and stress, Watson gave an exceptional performance that shocked the critics.