Emma Watson says she finally feel 'ready' to carry movies as an actress.
Emma Watson
Watson may have shot to fame as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter franchise, but she feels that the work that she has done throughout her career means that she is finally ready to take on leading film roles.
And that is exactly what she is going to do with her upcoming film Colonia, as she stars as a young woman who desperately searched for her abducted boyfriend - a search that draws her into the secret sect Colonia Dignidad. And the actress says that it is 'exciting' to finally be taking that major step.
Speaking to Total Film, the actress said: "It feels like I was building a portfolio over the last five, six years.
"Now I feel like I'm ready to really be carrying films. I'm really just ready now to focus on my career full time and go full steam ahead. It's exciting at the moment."
Colonia sees Watson team up with filmmaker Florian Gallenberger for the first time as he returns to the director's chair for the first time since City of War: The Story of John Rabe back in 2009. Daniel Bruhl and Michael Nyqvist are also on board the project.
Not only was Watson tackling a major lead role for the first time, but she admits that Colonia was also one of the most 'challenging' films of her careers because of the subject matter that she was dealing with.
She continued: "I was essentially playing a girl living in a concentration camp. It's tough emotionally, putting yourself in that place every day. So it was gruelling. But I really wanted to try. I really hope I've done it justice for people who actually really lived it and really experienced it. It felt like the right thing to do. It really challenged me. It really pushed me to the brink, this role."
We last saw Watson on the big screen last year when she teamed up with Russell Crowe for biblical epic Noah. As well as Colonia hitting the big screen this year, we are also going to see her star in Regression alongside Ethan Hawke.
The actress has also landed the role of Belle in a live-action remake of classic Beauty and the Beast. Watson will take on the role off Belle in the film, while Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Emma Thompson, Josh Gad, and Kevin Kline are on board as Beast, Gaston, Mrs Potts, Le Fou, and Maurice.
Bill Condon is in the director's chair for the film, which is due to hit the big screen in 2017. No official UK release date has yet been announced.
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