When you're a former child star coming off one of the most successful film franchises of all time, it can be hard to turn that popularity into a successful acting career. Rupert Grint played Harry Potter's best friend Ron Weasley in all eight Harry Potter films, and while the red-headed actor won the hearts of fans, he hasn't been able to find a lot of acting success since. His Potter co-stars Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe seem to be making the kinds of movies they want to, but Rupert Grint has mostly been out of the spotlight. So what happened? Here's the real reason Hollywood won't cast Rupert Grint anymore.
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00:00After starring as Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter franchise,
00:03Rupert Grint seemed ready to rule Hollywood. But a series of poorly received films and
00:07odd personal choices have kept the actor from fully embracing the spotlight.
00:11What happened? Here's why Hollywood won't cast Rupert Grint anymore.
00:16Letting go of one of the most iconic roles in pop culture is clearly no easy task.
00:20Rupert Grint has admitted that even he has trouble separating himself from Ron.
00:24He told Vulture in 2017,
00:26I think it'll always be with me. I had a weird relationship with that
00:29character because after that we kind of merged into the same person.
00:32I find it very hard to separate where I end and Ron begins."
00:35But closing the Harry Potter chapter of his life was so tough
00:38that Grint considered quitting acting altogether. He told Entertainment Weekly in 2017,
00:42We had such an intimate and intense few years in this bubble. I wanted to live a little bit.
00:46I felt like I'd missed out on a lot.
00:49It was nice to just be away from it and not have any kind of commitments at all,
00:52and just be a bit free. Compared to fellow Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson,
00:56Grint took on a much lighter workload between Potter films. Appearing in only three indie
01:00projects toward the end of the series, he missed out on truly showcasing his acting
01:04skills when all eyes were on him. During his aforementioned sabbatical,
01:08Rupert Grint experimented with odd jobs. He told the Daily Mail in 2014 that he purchased
01:13an ice cream truck as his first car because of childhood ambitions, saying,
01:16My first ambition was to become an ice cream man. I'm not allowed to sell my merchandise.
01:20I'd need a license for that. I'll drive around the local villages and if I see some kids looking
01:24like they're in need of ice creams, I'll pull over and dish them out for free.
01:28In 2011, Grint became a hotelier, opening Rigsby's Guesthouse in Harford, England.
01:32The boutique hotel turned out to be a money pit, and Grint shut it down four years later,
01:36having reportedly made less than $3,000 in profit. But it could be that Grint's true
01:40calling is in the animation department. Hardcore Harry Potter fans may remember
01:44when the actor drew an exaggerated doodle of the late Alan Rickman as Professor Snape.
01:48It was a doodle which Rickman fortunately loved.
01:50I made him sign it and I have it in my possession and I'm very fond of it."
01:56It turns out that drawing wasn't just something Grint did to combat boredom on set as a kid.
02:00It's actually one of his major passions, and he's kept this impressive skill in his
02:03back pocket for possible future work. He told the Mirror,
02:06I'd like to go into animation one day. I draw a lot, a lot of disturbing cartoons.
02:10It helps me unwind.
02:12When Rupert Grint finally returned to acting, he slowly eased back into the game with a few
02:16guest spots on the small screen. Acting in shows on both sides of the Atlantic,
02:20he lent his talents to programs like the animated Fox series American Dad
02:23and the U.K.'s folklore-based comedy Urban Myths.
02:26Is this a moon?
02:27A torch. The Marble Lions, they are horses.
02:30But of course, Grint also took advantage of his famous face and name recognition.
02:34In 2010, before the final Harry Potter film was released, he turned up for an appearance on the
02:39popular car show Top Gear, alongside Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May.
02:43Then in 2016, he starred as himself in the first episode of Tracy Ullman's show.
02:47But unfortunately for Grint, none of those non-Potter appearances made much of a splash.
02:51And on the film side of his career, things weren't much better. Honestly,
02:55it's a shame he couldn't borrow Ron Weasley's wand to conjure up better roles.
02:59When Rupert Grint returned to the big screen in 2013, it was anything but magical.
03:03The actor's first three post-Potter films were both critical and commercial failures.
03:07Into the White, a Norwegian World War II film, saw only a limited release,
03:11and received mixed reviews due to its slow pacing, predictable plot, and overall,
03:14quote, bland nature. CBGB, a historical punk rock drama which featured his former
03:19Harry Potter co-star Alan Rickman and actress Malin Ackerman, was panned by critics, earning
03:23a mere 7 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. However, the worst received of all was Charlie Countryman,
03:28a psychological dramedy in which Grint plays a wannabe adult film star.
03:31Commenting on the film, Variety called it, quote,
03:34"...a profoundly unnecessary movie," noting,
03:36"...strained attempts at magic realism will leave viewers more irritated than enchanted."
03:40Also critical of the movie, The New York Times wrote,
03:42"...this catastrophe of a movie zigzags drunkenly between action-adventure
03:46and surreal comedy with some magical realism slapped over it like ketchup."
03:50One of Grint's most notable post-Potter roles was one in which he didn't even appear on the screen.
03:54In 2014, he showed off his pipes voicing Josh,
03:56a video game-obsessed pop star in Postman Pat, the Movie.
04:00The animated film received mixed reviews. Critics overwhelmingly praised the voice
04:03actor's performances but felt the plot was too complicated and scary for kids.
04:07The Guardian called it, quote,
04:09"...a misjudgment," while The Hollywood Reporter wrote,
04:11"...Postman Pat, the movie, is a mostly charmless and dark affair."
04:14Grint's big return to film should have come with 2016's Moonwalkers.
04:18He played a seedy band manager who joins a thuggish CIA agent to stage the moon landing.
04:22"...not your bag, you're not Stanley Kubrick. I'm playing Stanley Kubrick."
04:28The actor told MTV News,
04:29"...I just thought it was so ridiculous. It really at no moment takes itself seriously."
04:34Unfortunately, the movie saw only a limited release and was hit with negative criticism.
04:38Roger Ebert.com said,
04:39Moonwalkers is a fake comedy, one that mistakes an endless bloody splatterfest
04:43of a finale for the height of hilarity, and never quite gets off the ground after takeoff.
04:48In 2013, Grint signed on to a project that had the potential to turn him into a television star
04:52in the States. CBS' pilot for Super Clyde was a comedy about a nerdy, neurotic food service worker
04:57who becomes an unlikely superhero when he inherits a ton of cash from a dead relative.
05:01While the pilot was well-received, the network opted not to pick it up to series.
05:05Adding insult to injury, CBS later decided to move forward without Grint attached to the show
05:10in 2015, reordering a second pilot to be shot with a brand new cast. The NBC pilot for Imperial City
05:15suffered a similar fate. In 2015, Grint was cast as the lead in this one-hour drama, playing a
05:20low-level New York City office employee who becomes obsessed with his late father's comic
05:24book series Imperial City. And, in a twist, Grint's character soon discovers that the
05:28fantasy world in the comics turns out to be real. Speaking with MTV News in 2016,
05:33Grint shared that he was excited about the show because he had, quote,
05:36always loved comics. Unfortunately, Grint's personal excitement over Imperial City
05:40just didn't catch on with the right people, and the series never got off the ground.
05:44Grint further distanced himself from Hollywood by pursuing work in theater,
05:47but here, the results were much more positive. In 2013, he made a stage debut on The West End
05:52in London in Jez Butterworth's controversial black comedy Mojo. His performance earned
05:56rave reviews and a What's On Stage award for Best Newcomer. He made his Broadway debut the
06:00following year in Terrence McNally's farce It's Only a Play. The actor told MTV News,
06:05That was really educational, actually, being on stage. I fell in love with acting again."
06:10In 2016, The Sun ran a scathing yet worrisome piece about Grint. The gossip rag suggested a
06:15correlation between the actor's dwindling career and his supposed health issues,
06:19alleged drinking and partying, and a reported lack of focus and drive. A source told the tabloid,
06:23Rupert is exceptionally unfocused right now. The insider further claimed that Grint had
06:27reached both a personal and professional love point, saying,
06:30He wanted to be a leading man on stage and screen, but at the moment he is neither.
06:33He's really disillusioned with his life and work."
06:36While Grint has largely remained silent about rumors of his alleged partying ways,
06:39as well as any dissatisfaction with his life,
06:42he has opened up about his apparent problem with saying no in social situations.
06:46Say no much to people on the street.
06:48I can't. This is one thing I just cannot do.
06:51At the same problem?
06:52I would, no.
06:53But Grint is adamant that his life, according to the tabloids, is completely false.
06:57Speaking to The Guardian in 2018, he said,
06:59As I got older, I could feel this growing narrative willing me to get engulfed in some
07:03big scandal off-screen. It felt like people were waiting for me to go off the rails,
07:06but it was never going to happen."
07:08Not unlike his Harry Potter castmates, Grint prefers to keep his personal life private.
07:12But the actor's high-profile relationships, particularly his rumored on-again, off-again
07:16romance with Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging actress Georgia Groom, have sometimes
07:20overshadowed his professional pursuits. While neither celeb has confirmed their relationship
07:24status, the two have been linked since 2011. Though Grint's alleged relationship with Groom
07:28appears to be an open secret in the entertainment industry, it doesn't seem like either film star
07:32has any plans to comment on their supposed romance, even after sparking marriage rumors
07:36in April 2019. But that doesn't mean Grint isn't thinking about taking that next step.
07:41He told The Guardian,
07:42I'd like to settle down and have kids soon. If I had a son,
07:44would I call him Ron? It's quite a good name, but probably not."
07:47And Grint's a tough name to pair a one-syllable first name with.
07:50While Rupert Grint may have been willing to make the temporary move to New York City for
07:54his stint on Broadway, he has no real plans to pursue work in the United States if it means
07:57leaving his home country for good. He told The Mirror in 2014,
08:01I like England. It's my home.
08:03Grint has apparently jumped into the real estate game back home as well.
08:06Over the years, he's purchased a number of properties in England, specifically in
08:10Hertfordshire, where he and his family live. He apparently acquired the homes through his
08:13company, Evil Plan Properties. And while he and his parents reside in two of the homes,
08:17at least one of the actor's properties is reportedly being rented out to locals.
08:21While Rupert Grint is a longtime supporter of a number of causes,
08:24he focuses much of his time and energy on raising awareness for child health initiatives.
08:28In 2011, he began working with Cancer Research UK. He told the Birmingham Mail that it was, quote,
08:33a privilege to support the charity's Little Star Awards, saying,
08:36The awards are a fantastic way of recognizing the bravery and courage of all children and
08:40their families who have been affected by cancer. In 2014, Grint became an ambassador for the
08:45Starlight Children's Foundation, which grants wishes to sick children. He told Third Sector,
08:49I am delighted, and I look forward to doing more to support this wonderful charity.
08:53Rupert Grint has quietly struggled to make his post-Potter mark in the entertainment industry,
08:57but it isn't a struggle he's particularly concerned with. He told The Independent,
09:01I'm not the most ambitious person. I'm quite laid back in that respect. I'm pretty content
09:05with how things are going. That said, the well-liked actor's career prospects have
09:08shifted in recent years. In 2017, Grint scored the role of hustler Charlie Cavendish
09:13in Crackle's crime drama Snatch, on which he also serves as executive producer.
09:17Keep an eye out. I'll be at the bar. It's the best vantage point now.
09:22Grint also won the part of insurance rep Daniel Glass, who faces an existential crisis
09:26after being misdiagnosed with a terminal illness, in the black comedy Sick Note.
09:29In 2019, fans got to enjoy Grint's performance as Inspector Chrome in the BBC miniseries The
09:34ABC Murders. Rounding out the 2010s, the actor scored a major role as Julian Pierce in M. Night
09:39Shyamalan's Apple Plus psychological thriller series Servant. With his career finally back
09:43on track, Grint reflected on his time in Tinseltown in 2018, telling The Guardian,
09:48I peaked pretty early, but I'm fine with that. It would be ridiculous to think that
09:51you can replicate that level of success. It's always going to be a challenge,
09:54but it's quite fun to surprise people.