One of the best elements of the Harry Potter movies is easily the chemistry amongst the members of the cast. Throughout the series, viewers see how Harry’s friendship with Ron and Hermione helps him through hard times. But, at the same time, those films also symbolize the different chapters of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. The trio apparently became so friendy with each other that while filming Deathly Hallows, they got pretty “competitive” while filming Deathly Hallows‘ running scene (and this is news to me).
Director David Yates previously said Deathly Hallows – Part 1 was a “great challenge,” considering it didn’t have as much momentum as the previous movies. Yet the movie gets a serious energy boost due to the scene that sees the core trio running from Snatchers in a forest. On a recent episode of Harry Potter’s official podcast, host Rhianna Dhillon commented on not knowing how “competitive” the cast was with each other doing this scene, and neither did I:
There’s loads of stuff about the behind the scenes of how competitive they all were about trying to outstrip each other, outrun each other. Which is just, like, classic.
As a viewer, I definitely believed Radcliffe, Grint and Watson were giving it their all during that forest scene. However, I can’t believe they were actually trying to outdo each other on set as well. Of course, this all sounds like it was friendly, but still. It seemed to have worked for the shoot, though, given how well done the scene is. Check out some BTS footage in the Instagram post below:
This is just one of several fun anecdotes involving these three Wizarding World stars. Watson shared a fun detail on set about how she’d play table tennis against Radcliffe and Grint. (Now, I’m curious who won those games.) There’s also an on-brand story about the three of them being told by Prisoner of Azkaban director Alfonso Cuarón to write an essay on their characters. Watson turned in 16 pages, Radcliffe wrote a paragraph and Grint had nothing to turn in. It’s a classic art imitating life moment.
When it comes to that Deathly Hallows Part 1 sequence, it’s not only interesting to know how “competitive” the young Harry Potter cast. It’s also hard not to take note of how it’s all crafted. Dhillon shared her take on what she felt rewatching that high-stakes chase:
What I love is how this is shot. Because for me, it feels like a zombie movie. […] Because you’ve got the trees, you’ve got the forest. The camera angles are so choppy. You don’t know where you’re coming in from. You don’t know whose eyes, you don’t know whose perspective you’re looking at it from.
It’s honestly fair to say that the sequence is kind of zombie-ish. With the shaky camera capturing Harry, Ron, and Hermione running for their lives, it gives an unsettling vibe regarding perspective. As the podcast host says, a viewer doesn’t know if the scene is being shot from a Snatcher’s point of view. Since Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is relatively low-key, a chase scene like this is necessary to remind fans of the danger the trio can face at any corner.
What I’d like now is for someone to ask Radcliffe, Watson or Grint about these on-set races and who thought was the winner. If the three were truly as competitive as believed, I could definitely imagine all three of them claiming victory for themselves.
Fans can rewatch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, along with the rest of the franchise, by streaming it with an HBO Max subscription or a Peacock subscription.
