Harry Potter star Rupert Grint has become the latest celebrity asked to speak about the rise of fascism and far-right politics at the Berlin Film Festival.
The British actor, famous for his role in the Harry Potter film series, said at a press conference for the new Finnish horror film Nightborn that he was “obviously against it.”
The question followed the trend of star guests being asked about politics at festivals, and several, including Michelle Yeoh and jury president Wim Wenders, refused to answer, sparking perhaps the Berlinale’s biggest buzz to date (and leading to one attendee leaving the event in disgust). On Saturday, a reporter spoke to Grint about Harry Potter author JK Rowling’s anti-trans views and asked him if he would consider speaking out against the rise of the far right, particularly in Britain.
“Obviously, I’m against it,” Grint said. “But I choose when to speak. But certainly, I think it’s obviously very important right now. You’ll definitely hear from me.”
Grint wasn’t the only one to talk politics at the press conference, with “Nightborn” director Hannah Bergholm asking why he wore a watermelon pin, which was used to express solidarity with Palestine.
“I think as adults, we have a responsibility to speak out against violence and injustice,” she said, adding, “And it’s important that we don’t tell other film artists they shouldn’t speak up.”
Meanwhile, screenwriter Ilya Lautsi added: “I think it’s important to shine a light on the problems we face. Art is all about empathy, so it might be good to somehow put some pressure on politicians and billionaires who only cause problems and do nothing, and it might be good to make people aware of what’s happening in the world, what’s happening in Ukraine, what the genocide is in Palestine.”
Nightborn will have its world premiere in Berlin on Saturday night. Filmed in Lithuania and the second film from Finnish director Bergolm, this chilling supernatural horror tells the story of a couple, Saga (Sejda Hara) and John (Grint), who move into a secluded house in the woods. However, the birth of their newborn son begins to cause rifts in their marriage. Saga is the only one who knows that something is wrong with her son.
Harla, producer Daniel Kuitunen and composer Eikka Toppinen also attended the press conference.
Ahead of the festival, Grint spoke to Variety about HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter television series, saying that hearing the news that a trio of young actors would be cast as Harry, Hermione, and Ron reminded him of how he himself began starring in the film series more than 25 years ago.
“When it was announced, it really took me back to 1999,” he said. “Because it’s been such an exciting time. I wish them all the best. It’s been such a fun journey. But it’s been so weird and surreal. But it didn’t feel like it was that long ago that we were done.”
Grint, who wrote to Alistair Stout, who played Ron Weasley on the show, said the new Potter children’s experience was likely to be very different from his own, as he didn’t have to worry about social media.
“It’s a long time. There’s always a time when you want to get out of it,” he said. “You make sacrifices, especially when you’re young. But I don’t regret it. It’s been a great time and I think they have a lot of good people around them that look after them.”
