I confess: I don’t surf Harry Potter fan sites. Not Leaky, Not MuggleNet, not HPANA, no live journal weblogs, no fan fiction or slash or Wizard Rock. The Hogs Head.org I do visit regularly but that’s about it. This means, of course, that I am as clueless about what most Harry Potter readers are talking about at any given time unless the subject is sufficiently “big news” for Wizard News to pick it up. All Pros regularly send me things they think I will be interested in and they’re usually correct.
I have little need, consequently, to search the internet for Potter topics. Aeschylus, Dorothy Sayers, William Penn, Coleridge, Tolkien, Dante and friends are all in the books — and no one else, to my knowledge, has done the heavy lifting we do here that is necessary to unpack Rowling’s artistry therein.
Why, then, should I care about the websites devoted to the actors playing the leads in the Harry Potter movies?
Because they are, individually and en masse, loud testimony, even a demonstration of the depth and breadth of Harry Potter as a counter-cultural phenomenon. These are people, not fictional characters, but they have become three dimensional living symbols of characters representing something else. Incredibly, readers, even non-readers, have devoted hours, make that “years,” to following and charting online the activities and emergent personalities of these young actors. Eliade was right about the mythological and religious function of entertainments in a secular culture.
I know the lists below just skim the surface of the ocean filled with Potter-movie star-sites. Please visit a few, share your impressions, and let me know about the ones you know about, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The Official Emma Watson website (accept no substitutes). Emma Watson.net. E W Online. Emma Online.org. I (heart) Emma.net. Totally Emma.net. Emma Fan.Chic Fans.com. Emma Watson Empire (She is the British Sunshine). Watson Fan.com. Lovely Emma.
Daniel Radcliffe Online. The Daniel Radcliffe Network. Dan Radcliffe.com. Dan Radcliffe.us. Dan Radcliffe.co.uk (under reconstruction). Radcliffe Head Quarters. Dan-lover-Diane’s Fan Site. A Dan Radcliffe link collection. Daniel Radcliffe Nude.com (yes, it exists; no, I’m not creating a link).
Rupert Grint.net. Ice Cream Man: a Rupert Grint fan site. Siriously Rupert.com. Rupert Grint Fan Club. A Rupert Grint website link collection.
The Trio together site. “Since 2004.”
Anyone have a guess about how many of these sites there are? Amazing!
I’m not visiting these sites, but am not at all surprised at this, given our celebrity-driven culture. The two young stars of “Twilight” (and sequels) are about to discover what it means to “three-dimensionally” represent fictional characters of a popular series. I read interviews with each in Entertainment Weekly and poor Robert Pattinson hasn’t a clue.
But three-dimensional representation isn’t anything new or countercultural. There are many actors who forever “embody” the fictional characters they portray (becoming so identified with them, they then have trouble getting other parts). It’s just that Harry Potter coincided with the rise of the Internet age, paving the way for this kind of fan activity.
Happy Thanksgiving to all American All-Pros.
And may the kitties get a bite…
I find the human propensity to ‘idolise’ individuals disturbing. I have even caught myself doing it and I do know better!
This phenomenon of using the same actors as they grow up is a unique and fascinating ‘experiment’ and I feel some concern about the effect the extremely close attention they receive has on the child / young adult actors.
I am crossing my fingers that they will come out of it unscathed.
I agree, SeaJay. I was, perhaps too subtly, referring to child actors strongly identified with a role, who cannot make the transition to adult actor. Very few do and those who don’t often end up with problematic lives. See “Danny Bonaduce, Gary Coleman,” et al.
Thudders “et all” is now sleeping by the fire…
Based on interviews with the adult actors from the Potter films over the years, it sounds like the kids are growing up well — “nearly normal,” as Dumbledore might say despite the fame and success. Credit for that may very well lie with Chris Columbus and his decision, when casting Sorcerer’s Stone, to interview the parents as well as the potential child actors. Reportedly Columbus was distressed about what had happend with Macaulay Culkin as a result of Home Alone and he was determined not to set up another group of kids for a similar fate.
Will they soar into other things? That remains to be seen. Dan’s abilities as actor have continued to grow …especially in the last three films. Doing stage work is a must for serious actors and that he has received good reviews for his work in Equus suggests he has talent to out-grow his role as Harry.
Emma seems bright enough and capable enough that she will always have a real life … whether she remains in “reel-life” or not. Of the three, she was always the most natural in terms of performance from the very beginning. She’s lovely; she can act; and she has a lot of other talents and skills, too.
Rupert … that remains to be seen. I know he has his legion of fans who often complain he is so under-used in the movies. But of the three lead actors, he’s the weakest. His non-Potter movies haven’t received great reviews … especially where his performance is concerned. Once the Potter connection is over, I’m not sure how long a future he’ll have in films. How well he handles those struggles will depend on how grounded and supported he is in his life off-screen.
Which brings us to Arabella’s point about “poor Robert Pattinson.” I figured he was a heart-throb in the making as soon as I saw him as Cedric Diggory in the run-up to the Goblet of Fire movie. Good looks … sweet character … tragic demise … all the things to set a teen-girl’s heart aflutter. I had no clue about Twilight or Edward … let alone that would be his next major movie. That pretty much seals the deal. The primary movie critic in the KC Star had a piece yesterday wondering if Pattinson will end up the same way as “It Boys” of the past. After what I’ve seen in interviews, things don’t look encouraging. He’s got dreams and aspirations, interesting approaches to things. But the discipline to reach them may not be there. The KC critic titled his piece “Pray for Robert Pattinson.” Indeed.
New kitty Sergei is thankful for a forever home where no one hurts him.
Nicely said, TrudyK. Your observations have been mine, as well.
I did not know, however, about Chris Colombus interviewing the trio’s parents. Good call and very responsible on his part.