That magical connection! Emma Watson and Tom Felton‘s characters in Harry Potter may not have seen eye to eye, but offscreen the actors have formed an adorable friendship throughout the years.
Watson and Felton originally met while playing enemies in the Harry Potter film franchise, which was based off of J.K. Rowling‘s critically acclaimed books. The actress took on the role of Hermione Granger, the smart Gryffindor student who aided best friend Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) as they attempted to take down Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes). Meanwhile, Felton played her Slytherin rival Draco Malfoy, who also ended up on the other side of the fight.
Almost a decade after the twosome worked on the introduction to the wizarding world in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Watson revealed that she had more than just friendly feelings for her costar.
“Between the ages of 10 and 12 I had a really terrible crush on Tom Felton, to the extent that I would go into work in the morning and look down the numbers on the call sheet to see if he was going to be in,” the Beauty and the Beast star told Jonathan Ross in 2009. “We love a bad guy, he was a few years older and he had a skateboard — and that just did it really.”
The Bling Ring actress noted that Felton was aware of her feelings, adding, “He totally knew and the thing is that he’d tell everyone, ‘I see her in a younger, sisterly way,’ and it just broke my heart. It still does.”
The Apparition star, for his part, explained that he considered his relationship with Watson as “something” because of how long they have known one another.
“We’ve been very close for a long time. I adore her. I think she’s fantastic. Hopefully she returns the compliment,” he told Entertainment Tonight in June 2021. “I spoke to Emma a couple days ago and immediately it was conversations about, ‘Oh, wow, the kitchen sink’s been plugged,’ or some trivial nonsense like my dog wouldn’t eat a particular kind of food. As far as the romantic side of it, I think that’s a Slytherin/Gryffindor thing rather than a Tom and Emma thing. I absolutely think the world of her.”
During HBO Max’s Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts reunion special, the offscreen friends candidly addressed the bond that they continue to share.
“Emma and I have always loved each other, really,” Felton shared in the highly anticipated premiere, with Watson recalling the moment she developed feelings for her costar. “I walked into the room where we were having tutoring. The assignment that had been given was to draw what you thought God had looked like and Tom had drawn a girl with a backward cap on with a skateboard. And I just don’t know how to say it, I just fell in love with him.”
Scroll down for all of the sweet moments that Felton and Watson have shared over the years: