Rupert Grint Takes a Break from “Harry Potter” to Star in an Independent Film

Rupert Grint stars as Ben, the straitlaced 17-year-old son of an overly religious mother and a vicar, in Driving Lessons written and directed by Jeremy Brock. Instead of being out having fun like the other kids in his class, Ben has to spend his summer vacation taking driving lessons from his mom and attending bible class. Fortunately for Ben, his life’s turned upside down when he takes a job assisting an eccentric retired actress (played by Julie Walters).

The Appeal of Driving Lessons: “I wasn’t really looking out for anything, it just sort of came. I was doing the fourth Harry Potter film and it came up after that. I just really liked the script and it was just something really different. I’d been filming the fourth one for about eleven months and I just wanted to do something different. I love sort of being Ron, it’s just sort of good to do something different so that’s why.”

Reuniting with Julie Walters: Working with Walters on Driving Lessons was a much different experience than working with Walters on the Harry Potter movies. “It’s quite different,” said Grint. “Obviously they’re completely different characters. It was actually really good having Julia there because I knew her before in the Harry Potter films. We were only filming for like six weeks [and] it was good to have someone there you sort of knew. She was really fine, really easy to get on with, so she’s cool.”

Grint says it was a bit strange seeing Walters take on a character so unlike Harry Potter’s Molly Weasley. “It was, yeah, especially with all the swearing and that. Some of it was quite shocking. The first scene we rehearsed was the camping scene when she swallows the key. She’s very funny, and she’s really cool.”

Adventures in Driving: “I had to drive down this road and then park it on this hill. Down the hill, just about five feet away, was our camera crew and they were just filming the front of the car. And in the scene, you had to get out of the car and do something, I can’t remember now, but I drive up and we all get out of the car and I forgot to put the handbrake on, the parking brake on and the car started to go down towards the crew. That was quite a close call. I had to dive into the car and put the brake on. That was kind of scary.”

Grint didn’t get his driver’s license until after he’d finished the film, which meant he was driving around without a license. “Yeah, only on private roads,” joked Grint. “They didn’t trust me on major roads. There’s a load of ways to get around it, like I had a driving double. We had this guy over there with a ginger wig who just drove around all these roads. That was quite strange.”

On Real Life Driving Lessons: Grint now has his license and instead of tooling around in something expensive and fancy, he prefers his Mini Cooper. After what he calls an ‘embarrassing amount’ of driving lessons, he managed to pass the driving test – but not without a few hitches. “My test, I was really nervous. I failed my first one, but I passed my second attempt. It was quite scary.”

What portion of the test did he fail? “I was doing a three-point-turn, and I didn’t look over my shoulder or something. Something stupid like that.”

Rupert Grint Gets the Girl in Driving Lessons: “Actually I was really dreading that scene,” confessed Grint. “I was really nervous because, obviously, you’re in a tiny set and the whole crew is watching you. It is a bit nerve-wracking. But, no, it was alright in the end. The worst part is watching it back with your family. That’s the embarrassing part. It’s not too bad.”

Ben from Driving Lessons vs Harry Potter’s Ron: Which character is more like the real Rupert Grint? “I’ve always felt like I could relate to Ron. I can’t really see much in common with Ben. I suppose I have a sort of teenage side, his awkwardness around girls and that. I can sort of relate to that. No, I’m most definitely…I’m sort of more Ron, I think.”

Going From a Huge Production to an Independent Film: The difference between working on a Harry Potter movie and Driving Lessons is like night and day. Even the trailers are smaller on an independent film. “Obviously because it’s a smaller budget, you notice the few differences like that. I’m used to like having a dressing room and stuff like that, and being based in a studio. That was one of the most different things, because on this we weren’t in a studio. We were just going around London, and it was really good fun though.”

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Rupert Grint is best known as the redheaded Ron Weasley in the ‘Harry Potter’ movies. But he managed to take some time off from wizarding school to star alongside Laura Linney in the coming-of-age movie ‘Driving Lessons,’ in theaters this Friday. Grint plays a young boy trying to find relief from his overbearing mother (Linney).

AMNew York talked to Grint just before the movie opens.

So, how did you come to be involved with the film? Well, I was doing the fourth Harry Potter film and got sent the script. [The filming] was only going to be six weeks, so it was quite easy. I met with Jeremy [Brock, the writer/director] and he was really cool. It just sort of happened from there, really.

I know you were working on getting your own driving license, has that come to pass? Yeah. I passed on Saturday.

So how about your character. Is there anything in your personality that relates to him at all? Not really. There are a few sort of teenage things, like his actions around girls. They’re quite awkward and strange, and I can generally relate to that.

Was this your first onscreen kiss? This was my first.

Was that something that was exciting or was it awkward? I was actually quite nervous about that, because it’s quite a big step. It was really weird because you have the whole crew watching you. It makes you really self-conscious. But she [actress Michelle Duncan] was really cool. She’s older, so it helped a little bit. Watching it back is the worst, especially with my family. They laughed their hearts out.

How was this film different from filming Harry Potter? There were no sets, for one. We filmed all around London. It was only six weeks and the budget was pretty small.

There’s a scene in which you resist some wine because you say you’re underage at 17. Just to clarify, what is the drinking age in the UK? Eighteen. You can pretty much do whatever you want at 18.

Are you getting used to all the screaming, fanatical Potter fans? A little bit, yeah. I’ve been recognized a lot more recently. I don’t know if it’s something you get used to, it’s really weird. They’re always really nice so it’s never a problem.

You were recently getting ready to film the Thestral scenes in the fifth Harry Potter movie. Have you finished those yet? Yeah, we did those the other day. It was really a good time because they had to make a mold, a specially made harness that goes under your legs, because in the film it has to be invisible. [The Thestral is a magical horse-like creature that is only visible to those who've witnessed death.] They put you on this crane and lifted you up in the air. That’s been my favorite scene so far.

And that was done on a green screen? Yeah. We’re working on a lot of the final scenes now, the Dumbledore’s Army stuff.

What’s next for you? When does ‘The Order of the Phoenix’ wrap? We’re finished the middle of November, I think.

And you get a break after that? Yeah. We don’t start the next one until next summer, so there’s quite a big break. I’m going to try and do something else in-between.

I’ve heard you’re afraid of spiders, are there any in the new film? They were going to put in a scene where a spider comes down on my leg while I’m hiding under a tree, and they were going to use a real spider. So they were doing tests with different spiders, letting them crawl on my leg. They ended up cutting it because I couldn’t really deal with it.

Were they using tarantulas? Yeah, baby tarantulas. They’re horrible.

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With only a few school plays to his credit, Rupert Grint infamously won the role of Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter film series with an audition tape featuring a rap that extolled his suitability and desire for the part. Grint filmed a role in kid’s movie Thunderpants thereafter, but the new Driving Lessons offers him a chance to step into more adult roles. I spoke with Grint during his stop at San Francisco’s Ritz Carlton.

Groucho: Do you remember first catching the acting bug, as they say?

Rupert Grint: Yeah, I always sort of—I’d done a few school plays, at school. And I’d always sort of been involved in the drama there. But yes, I’ve always had sort of an interest in it.

G: You don’t know what drew you to it?

RG: I don’t know. Not really. I mean, no one in my family ever really—my dad was once on the shopping channel, QVC, selling stuff. (Laughs.) Yeah, right.

G: In your own school plays, I take it you played a more interesting role than the eucalyptus tree.

RG: (Chuckles.) Yeah, definitely, yeah. It was really good to get into something different—even from Ron, really. It was a lot more, sort of—harder, I suppose. ‘Cause Ron’s mainly just—just looks scared all the time, and this was something really—some really good, different things to go through.

G: How would you describe the character of Ben?

RG: He’s quite sheltered. I mean, he’s from a religious family, and he’s got no friends. He’s a bit of a loner. He goes through quite a journey through the thing. And he sort of comes out of his shells, as it goes on. As he meets Julie Walters, her character, he sort of changes slightly, sort of becomes more independent and grows up a bit.

G: How is it that the Julie Walters character draws him out, do you think? What is he responding to there?

RG: I think—I dunno. I mean, I suppose the first time they met, he’s like—she’s someone he’s never sort of—the sort of character he’s never seen before: she swears, she drinks, she steals things. And she’s just—just I dunno. They just somehow really get on, have this strange friendship. Yeah. Yeah.

G: What’s the status on your own driving? I understand that you passed your test.

RG: Yeah—last week.

G: It took you a while to do that, though, right?

RG: (Laughs.) Yeah—it was my second test. And I’d been learning for too long. It was like—oh, I don’t know how many lessons I had. Just too many—I’ll enjoy driving—it’s good.

G: And it’s not a publicity stunt to delay your driving?

RG: (Laughs.) No, yeah.

G: It would suit the film, wouldn’t it?

RG: Yeah, definitely, yeah.

G: How is driving changing your life? I guess you haven’t had much of a chance to figure that out yet, huh?

RG: Sure, well, yeah, ’cause I only just passed. But yeah, I mean it is completely sort of freedom now. You can sort of go where you want. I’ve got a car, as well. I’ve got a little Mini—Mini Cooper, so, yeah.

G: I heard that you nearly wiped out the crew at one point with the car in the film.

RG: Oh, yeah. We were doing this scene. And I didn’t really get to do too much driving on it. But I mean, I did a few sort of private roads. And we were doing this scene where I had to drive down this sort of hill, park it up, and get out of the car and do something. And this hill—there’s the crew about sort of five foot away from where I’m supposed to be stopping. And, yeah, I drive up there and get out of the car, and suddenly the car starts to roll. Roll towards the crew. And I had to dive in there and pull the handbrake. It was quite close, actually.

G: How did you prepare to play this role? I know it was in part based on Jeremy Brock’s own life. Did you ply him for more details about his own experience?

RG: Uh, yeah, we had a few—the whole cast had a few rehearsals where we did read-throughs. And I went to Jeremy’s house, as well, and we did a few sort of like sessions with him. And he used to talk about stuff, and show me pictures of his—when he was a kid. No, it was really useful, that. And then on the set, as well, he was really good for like—really clear at giving advice on that. Because he wrote it as well. And he sort of, um—it was sort of his story. So he was really good at sort of giving advice on that.

G: One of the themes of the film is how Ben’s faith affects his development, really. How did you see that: in what ways does it help him? In what was does it hinder him?

RG: Yeah, erm. I’m trying to think—it does sort of keep him in this shell, really. And his mum doesn’t let him do anything. She’s really sort of overprotective and quite scary. (Laughs.) Yes, I suppose it doesn’t really help him much, really. Yeah.

G: Do you have a strategy for embarking on a career as an adult actor?

RG: Uh, not really. I mean, I’m just—I want to do the next two Harry Potter films. And just see what goes from there, really. And maybe do some other stuff like this, in between, because it was a really good experience.

G: It’s probably hard to imagine life after Harry Potter, I guess.

RG: I know, it’s going to be weird when it all ends, ’cause it has been a big part of my life, really.

G: When you travel around for films and do press like this, do you get to do touristy stuff?

RG: Yeah, a little bit. But I usually don’t get much time. I mean, this—I’ve never been here before, and I got here last night. And we’re leaving later today, for Dallas or something. So, yeah, it’s a shame we don’t get much more time.

G: I understand you didn’t get on in school. Why is that, do you think?

FG: I dunno! It was—I mean, I liked the sort of social side of it, and my mates, and that. But, um, it was just the learning thing; it was just—I just didn’t find a subject I could really—except for art. I really got on there, but—. And if I could do anything—’cause I can always go back. I mean, I did my final exams, and left when I was sixteen. I can always go back and do a course in something, but I can’t really see it. I mean, ’cause—I dunno, it just didn’t really, didn’t really—

G: And you’re pretty determined to keep at the film, right?

RG: Definitely, yeah, I mean, I really enjoy it. It is good fun. Yeah, it’s good.

G: Do you have aspirations to branch out into ever writing or directing?

RG: Erm, I haven’t thought about it, really. It’s always sort of an option, I suppose, in the future, but I can’t really see it. (Chuckles.) Right at the moment.

G: I know you can’t talk about specifics, but could you describe what your latest director, David Yates, is bringing to the series?

RG: Yeah, he’s really different, actually, to the other ones. He’s much more sort of laid-back, and much more calm—than the other ones we’ve had. I think, he’s really good at sort of giving us—he’s given us a lot more freedom this time around. And sort of lets us do a bit of our own thing—which is quite good. No, it’s really good, actually. We’ve got a new writer, as well [Ed. Michael Goldenberg], who gives it sort of a different feel. So, no, it’s going to be interesting, this one.

G: I’m very curious what the culture is like on a Harry Potter set. I know it might change based on the director. Do the actors set the mood? Does it chnage with each director?

RG: Yeah, it’s quite amazing how each director brings their own atmosphere to the set. Mike Newell was quite funny, because he’s crazy. He did the fourth one, and he didn’t care what he said; he was really—would swear at us if we got it wrong, sort of shout at us. He was really funny. And obviously Chris Columbus was great for the first two, and Alfonso’s crazy—we’ve had some really good ones, actually. Yeah, so it was good.

G: When the cameras aren’t rolling, do you have much time to hang out with the other actors, or do you find yourself retreating to your trailer? What’s that like?

RG: Yeah, well, I’ve got, um—yeah, but, um…now I’ve finished school, I’ve got much more time off-set. And I’ve got a really good dressing room up there. I’ve got table tennis, pool, and TV and—yes, they know where I am, in my room, so it’s good.

G: What’s the greatest length you’ve gone to to avoid being recognized in public?

RG: (Chuckles.) I dunno, it’s um—it’s quite hard, really, having so much hair, in this color. It sort of does stand out. So it’s quite hard to—no, I mean, I try caps and that. I mean, they’re always really nice. And it never gets crazy, so. It’s never really been sort of too much of a problem.

G: The film is about lessons, and you learn your lessons from Julie Walters, who plays your mother in the Harry Potter films. What sort of acting lessons have you learned from working with folks like Julie Walters or Robbie Coltrane or the great British actors you’ve worked with?

RG: Yeah, yeah. I don’t know really. I mean, you don’t really—they don’t teach you anything particularly. It’s just really good just to sort of work with them, really. It’s pretty amazing, the sort of people who worked on the Harry Potter films. Erm. But no, it’s just really good to work with them. Working with Julie again is wicked ’cause she’s so funny. She’s really cool.

G: Do you ever observe methods that they’re using, or do you work with an acting coach? What’s your kind of acting method?

RG: I dunno, really. I suppose you do in a way, yeah. You’re always sort of watching what they’re doing, and that. No, it’s quite interesting. No, but in the early ones, we had, like, a voice coach, on One and Two and Three. Yeah, so that sort of helped us a little bit then…

G: And do you plan to ever trod the boards again?

RG: Erm, I dunno. I mean, I only ever experienced it on a really small scale, so it’d be a whole different experience, I think, on a big sort of stage. But I dunno. Yeah, I mean, definitely—it is quite a sort of a thrill about doing it; it does give you quite a buzz. But, yeah, maybe that’s something in the future. I know Dan [Radcliffe] is just about to do a big play in London, yeah.

G: Equus.

RG: Yeah.

G: Alright, well, thank you very much.

RG: Cool, yeah.

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RUPERT GRINT ON HIS NEW FILM, SHOT BETWEEN HARRY POTTER MOVIES.

IT’S the steamy encounter set to break the hearts of Harry Potter fans the world over. After a raunchy salsa dance with a shapely brunette, Rupert Grint returns to her flat for a passionate one-night stand. Ron Weasley, it seems, is growing up fast.

“I must admit, I was quite nervous about doing my first on-screen kiss – actually I was really worried,” admits the 18-year-old redhead, “but it wasn’t all that bad in the end. The girl I had to snog, Michelle Duncan, was older than me, which somehow made it easier.

“I just made sure I kissed her properly because I didn’t want to go for lots and lots of takes. Mind you, watching it on the big screen for the first time was a bit painful because my dad was sitting next to me. I don’t have a girlfriend at the moment and am quite happy being single, but who knows what’s around the corner? I’d like to meet a woman with a sense of humour and I wouldn’t mind at all if they were a Potter fan.”

Rupert’s close encounter is featured in the new film, Driving Lessons – released today – in which he stars as an awkward teenager called Ben who befriends boozy, eccentric retired actress Evie, played by Julie Walters. She, coincidentally, also played Ron Weasley’s mum in the first three Harry Potter movies.

Ben’s life is changed forever when he replies to an ad for a home help placed by Evie. As their unlikely friendship grows, he drives her from London to Edinburgh, along the way having some life-changing experiences, including a fling with a shapely Scottish girl called Bryony, played by Duncan. When saying goodbye to her after a night of passion, he hilariously tells her, “Thank you for having me”.

Although Driving Lessons centres on Ben’s friendship with Evie, it also deals with the awkwardness of being a teenager and the agonies of first love. In one of the movie’s most memorable scenes, Ben reads a romantic poem to a girl he’s got a terrible crush on – with embarrassing results.

“Thank God I’ve never done that,” laughs Rupert. “I’m quite different to Ben when it comes to women, although I am a little bit shy just like he is. But I definitely don’t write poetry.”

Rupert made Driving Lessons after Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, in which he reprised his role as the young wizard’s best friend. And despite his worldwide fame, the new movie is only the second non-Potter film he’s appeared in, after the 2002 comedy Thunderpants.

“I’ve had a few offers, but the gap between the Harry Potter films was always too small to fit any of them in,” says Rupert. “But there was quite a big break between the last film and the new one (The Order Of The Phoenix, due next year) and we were able to make Driving Lessons in just six weeks. It was also refreshing to play a more complicated character because Ron is mostly just scared.”

Rupert insists he wants to star in all seven of the Potter films, even though he could be 22 when the final, unnamed instalment is released in cinemas.

“I’m filming the new one in Watford right now and it’s proving great fun,” he grins. “This could be the best one yet. The series has been such a big part of my lifethat it would be a shame if someone else took over the part. I want to be in the lot and hopefully that’ll happen.”

Rupert and I meet at an Edinburgh tea party held to mark the launch of the film, attended by John Hurt, Walters and Harry Potter creator JK Rowling.

She tells The Ticket she is half-way through writing the seventh and possibly final book, but the 41-year-old Scottish author is keeping tight-lipped over rumours she’s planning to kill off Harry.

“I’m up to about 750 pages now, but I’m not telling anyone what happens to Harry,” she says. “I’ve just come along to support Rupert who’s absolutely terrific in Driving Lessons.”

So, for someone who has seen so much success so young, how does Rupert see his career progressing?

“I don’t know where I want to be in five or 10 years time,” he says. “I’ll just see where things lead me, but I’d love to do more films like Driving Lessons.”

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“Any opportunity I can get to go to London, I will grab,” Laura Linney said on Tuesday night. But she wasn’t in London; she was at the New York premiere of Driving Lessons, the directorial debut of screenwriter Jeremy Brock, and she was referring to the chance to appear in another film set across the pond. This time she even got to play English, a task she pulls off successfully in the picture, despite her worries. “It was a little intimidating being around a bunch of Brits and trying to pull [the accent] off, but I hope it’s all right. I worked hard on it.”

Driving into town: (L-R) Lessons co-stars Linney and Grint at
Tuesday’s premiere (Photos: Christopher Campbell)

On her decision to take on an unusually unlikable character, she told The Reeler, “You don’t really judge your characters; you just play them.” But does she have to justify the disagreeable ones in order to play them? “You just have to understand them,” she replied.

In Driving Lessons, Linney plays the overprotective mother of Ben, an awkward teen portrayed rather impassively by Rupert Grint (the Harry Potter films’ Ron Weasley). Ben comes of age with all the cliches of the genre — even with his mum being in the way — while spending a summer working for an eccentric old actress (an over-the-top Julie Walters). Although his own adolescence has been different than most, Grint was able to relate to Ben when it came to the opposite sex. “Yeah, it was quite nerve racking,” he said about his love scene with Michelle Duncan, though he added, “The worst part is watching it back with your family.”

Comparing the Driving Lessons shoot to Harry Potter, Grint said, “You work much quicker. You do four scenes a day; on Potter we’re doing a scene a week I’d like to do more stuff like (this).”

Grint arrived for the occasion wearing American-flag Converse and was accompanied by his father, ensuring once again another uncomfortable virginity-loss scene. As for his own driving lessons, Grint informed The Reeler that he just passed his test on Saturday. — Christopher Campbell

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