Daniel Radcliffe will forever be known for his iconic role as Harry Potter in the book-turned-film franchise. But unlike his co-star Emma Watson who went on to play other notable roles like Belle in Disney's animated film, Beauty and the Beast, the former has been off the grid.
But in 2022, the new dad talked about reprising his role as the famous wizard, which he believes is a bad idea. Frankly, it might even save the series, especially with J.K. Rowling's recent scandals.
That aside, Radcliffe was already worried about the author writing more Harry Potter books when he was still working on the films. His fans can't blame him either. "I think he is just being polite because he doesn't want to piss off Harry Potter fans," one wrote on Reddit.
They noted that the former child star "has been very consistent and very clear on his opposition to Rowling's transgender views and has been a big trans rights supporter." Even so, why haven't we seen much of him lately? Here's an update on Radcliffe's life these days.
Did Daniel Radcliffe Quit Acting?
Radcliffe is still acting these days, just not in projects that would bring him as much attention as Harry Potter did. His last big role was as Weird Al in the 2022 biopic, Weird: The Weird Al Yankovic Story. In an interview with NME, the actor admitted to initially doubting himself for the part. "When I was approached, I thought, 'That's really cool, but I feel like there are people closer to Al, physically," he shared.
"I didn't get at all what the premise of the film was. Then I started reading the script and realized, oh, naturalism and accuracy is not part of their game," he continued. Yankovic was also convinced that Radcliffe was the right man to portray him after watching him sing to Rihanna and Colin Farrell on The Graham Norton Show.
"He performed The Elements Song by Tom Lehrer," said the musician. "You have to be kind of a big nerd to memorize that. I thought: 'Here's a kindred spirit. This guy gets it." But it was ultimately Radcliffe's girlfriend and baby mama, Erin Darke who immersed him in Yankovic's world.
"My girlfriend Erin, she's been to three concerts and her dad and brother have been to even more," the Guns Akimbo actor revealed. "That was when my induction into the fold really began… Every road trip or Christmas, there will be an Al soundtrack. There's a lot of Al in our lives."
Why Did Daniel Radcliffe Leave Harry Potter?
Before leaving Harry Potter for good in 2011, Radcliffe had already thought of quitting as early as the third installment. "By the third film, I thought, if there's a time to get out, it's now; there's still enough time for another actor to come in and establish himself," he said of wanting to explore his range back then.
"For a while I thought, if I do all of them, will I be able to move on to other stuff or should I start doing other stuff now?" he continued, adding that he was worried about finding roles of the same caliber. "And actually there aren't many great parts out there for teenage boys, certainly not as good as Harry Potter."
He carried the dilemma until the end of his stint in the franchise. But reflecting on his past decisions, he doesn't regret staying in it for so long, although he confessed to hating some parts of it like his then-amateur acting skills. "It's just a fact of your life, so you can't get annoyed by it or resent it," he later said of that time.
He added: "You have to embrace the fact that you were involved in this incredibly cool thing that did wonders for the British film industry and though you might not always be happy with the work you did on it, the opportunity it has given you to forge a career for yourself is amazing."
Why Is Daniel Radcliffe Not Returning To Harry Potter?
In a joint 2022 interview with his The Lost City co-stars Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum — whose daughters had a massive feud — Radcliffe explained why he doesn't plan on appearing in any Harry Potter movie anytime soon.
"I'm getting to a point where I feel like I made it out of Potter okay and I'm really happy with where I am now, and to go back would be such a massive change to my life," he told the New York Times.
He clarified: "I'm never going to say never, but the Star Wars guys had like 30, 40 years before they went back. For me, it's only been ten. It's not something I'm really interested in doing right now."
