Harry Potter Star, Matthew Lewis Reveals Why It Is Painful To Re-Watch The Films

Harry Potter star Matthew Lewis has revealed that he would prefer an invisibility cloak when it comes to watching his performance in the movies again. The actor played the role of Neville Longbottom who was a fan-favorite character.

He played the character from 2001 to 2011 and has revealed watching him in that is “painful”. The actor says re-watching the film which made him a star is something he would not prefer. He revealed how difficult he finds it when too much of him comes through in a character.

Matthew shared how his portrayal of Neville hits a little too close to home. He said, “It’s easier when I can play someone completely different, like a police officer in London or someone who’s wealthy.”

The actor revealed at times it is painful how much of him is in Neville. He shared when he watches it, he thinks it’s him, not the character. The Harry Potter start said, “At times it’s painful how much of me there is in Neville. When I’m watching, I’m like, ‘That’s not Neville; that’s you.'”

David Yates, the director of the final four films of Harry Potter talked about the parallels between Neville and Matthew. He shared how the actor became more confident, curious, and present as the films progressed. The director said, “[Matthew] became more confident, more curious, more present as the films progressed. And more ambitious.”

“It opened so many doors for me”

David also talked about the one scene he wrote especially for Matthew that was not in the books. In the last and final movie, Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Neville had blown up a bridge to Hogwarts to slow down Lord Voldemort’s army.

The director shared how it captured the charms of Neville and Matthew’s “everyman quality”. He expressed how he had modesty and an honesty that was hard to be ignored.

However, despite him not wanting to watch the wizard series again, he is still not annoyed when people refer to him as the actor from Harry Potter. “If there’s something people remember you by, there are worse things than the Harry Potter franchise,” he said. 

The actor shared how it opened so many doors for him when he would not even have left the room. He said, “It opened so many doors for me when I otherwise wouldn’t even have gotten in the room.”