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Rupert Grint admits he found making Harry Potter 'suffocating'

The actor played Ron Weasley in all eight of the Harry Potter films

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 25: Rupert Grint attends the
Rupert Grint says he felt 'suffocated' by Harry Potter. (Getty Images)

Rupert Grint has admitted that he found making Harry Potter "suffocating".

Grint played Ron Weasley in the franchise for ten years and spent much of his childhood on the set of the movies.

Talking to Bustle, Grint admits that the relentless nature of filming then promoting the films took a toll on him: “Potter was so full on — [filming] all year, then we’d promote the rest of the time. It was quite suffocating.

Read more: Rupert Grint would like to revisit Harry Potter's Ron Weasley

RELEASE DATE: June 28, 2007. MOVIE TITLE: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. STUDIO: Heyday Films. PLOT: Harry is about to start his fifth year at Hogwarts. He's desperate to get back to school and find out why his friends Ron and Hermoine have been so secretive all summer. However, what Harry is about to discover in his new year at Hogwarts will turn his world upside down. PICTURED: RUPERT GRINT as Ron Weasley.
Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. (Alamy)

"I wanted a break, to reflect on everything... It was an out-of-body experience for a while, but I think we finished at the right time. If we continued, it could’ve gone downhill.”

Grint also acknowledges the similarities between him and Ron: "In the movies, we merged into one. By the end of it, I was playing myself. The lines were blurred. I answer to it, if someone calls me Ron. It’s my second name.”

Grint was part of the Harry Potter reunion last year where he shared an emotional moment with Emma Watson as both discussed struggling with the fame associated with the series.

During the show, Grint made Watson cry as he said: "We’re family, we always will be. It’s a strong bond, we’ll always be part of each other’s lives.”

First look at Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, and Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts (2021 Warner Media)
Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, and Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts (2021 Warner Media)

Watson later commented on the moment, saying: “When Rupert says things, he really means them. I was taken aback by how vulnerable and kind he was deciding to be so publicly.”

Since the last Harry Potter film in 2011, Grint has built an eclectic body of work including multiple collaborations with M Night Shymalan including the upcoming Knock at the Cabin which also stars Dave Bautista — in cinemas Friday.

Grint also starred in and produced a TV adaptation of the Guy Ritchie film Snatch and the BBC's The ABC Murders.

Watch below: Rupert Grint open to revisiting Harry Potter character 'if timing was right'