Yesterday two actresses playing Hermione Granger in seperate adaptations of the Harry Potter series met each other! Emma Watson plays young Hermione in the eight Harry Potter films. Noma Dumezweni plays an older version of the character in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, J.K Rowling’s new play.
Yesterday, Emma Watson went to see The Cursed Child, and met the cast, including the alternate universe Hermione, Noma Dumezweni. She posted about her emotional experince viewing the play and meeting Noma on Facebook.
Meeting Noma and seeing her on stage was like meeting my older self and have her tell me everything was going to be alright, which as you can imagine was immensely comforting (and emotional)!
Emma said that this experience made her feel more connected to Hermoine and the stories than she had in a while. It seems like there was definitely some magic in the air!
Noma also expressed her sentiments about meeting Emma on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/missdumezweni/status/751175350466519042
It is wonderful to see this promotion of diversity and acceptance after the backlash that sparked when Noma was first casted. Some fans were upset that Hermione would be portrayed as black, since she was played by a white actress in the films. J.K Rowling was quick to defend Noma. She said that Hermione’s skin colour was never actually specified in the books. Noma was casted simply because she was the best actress for the job.
Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione ? https://t.co/5fKX4InjTH
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) December 21, 2015
Emma also previously showed her support for Noma:
Can't wait to see Noma Dumezweni as Hermione on stage this year. ?????????????????????????? #harrypotterandthecursedchild #2016
— Emma Watson (@EmmaWatson) January 2, 2016
The connection between these ladies is definitely something unique, a bond that only they can share. They are the only people that play Hermione Granger in a large scale production. They may look different, and they’re part of different storylines, but they both embody the spirit and personality of Hermione beautifully. Now that is something special to bond over!
What are your thoughts on this magical meeting? Tell us your thoughts on Twitter @CelebMix.