Emma was ranked #55 on the Top 99 Women of 2009, at the AskMen.com
Why was Emma number 55?
When casting began for the film adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone about 10 years ago, Emma Watson was only nine years old and studying at the Oxford branch of Stagecoach Theatre Arts. Thanks to her theater teacher, who directed casting agents to the budding actress, eight auditions later Emma Watson, along with her then future castmates Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, landed the leading roles that would soon change the course of their lives.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone went on to make $975 million worldwide, en route to becoming one of the most lucrative movies of all time. Watson reclaimed her role as bookworm Hermione for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which came out in July 2009. Prior to the opening of The Half-Blood Prince, the Potter flicks had already taken in over $4.5 billion worth of ticket sales. Watson recently wrapped up filming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I (out in 2010) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II (out in 2011).
Where will you see her post-Potter? University, no less. “Until something comes along that I feel as strongly about as I did Hermione — like, I felt that it was life or death — I don’t want to act again,” says the young actress. Watson won’t be completely out of the limelight any time soon, and not just because Harry Potter films will be in theaters until 2011. Emma stars in Burberry’s Autumn/Winter 2009 campaign, shot by none other than world renowned photographer Mario Testino.