When something really great happens, everyone’s first instinct is to take a selfie. Well, if you are ever luck enough to run into the queen, Emma Watson, don’t expect to be able to pull out your phone and snap a picture. In a recent article, Emma Watson revealed that she would no longer pose with fans for selfies or pictures of any kind—and she has a good reason for it.
After taking on the role of Hermione Granger in the renowned Harry Potter films, the now 26-year-old actress has been at the center of stardom since she was just eleven years old. Although Watson has only gone to act in smaller films since her wide success with the Harry Potter franchise, her work with the UN and the He For She campaign, along with her portrayal of Belle in the highly anticipated live-action Beauty and the Beast film, has kept her at the forefront of news and entertainment. As a result of this stardom, Watson began to feel a disconnect with her Hollywood life:
“I’d walk down the red carpet and go into the bathroom. I had on so much makeup and these big, fluffy, full-on dresses. I’d put my hands on the sink and look at myself in the mirror and say, ‘Who is this?’ I didn’t connect with the person who was looking back at me, and that was a very unsettling feeling.”
Now, in an attempt to try to control this over-the-top stardom, Watson has established a selfie ban when it comes to interacting with fans. While this may come as a shock, Watson’s reasons behind the ban are plausible: it relates back to matter of her own safety and security. In an article for Vanity Fair, Watson explained, “For me, it’s the difference between being able to have a life and not. If someone takes a photograph of me and posts it, within two seconds they’ve created a marker of exactly where I am within 10 meters, They can see what I’m wearing and who I’m with. I just can’t give that tracking data.”
In the same Vanity Fair article, Watson also added that the selfie-seeker ban is not a black-and-white rule: she must carefully “pick and choose” the people she wants to interact with, and determine whether the interaction is based solely on “celebrity sighting” or if it is an experience that will “make someone’s freakin’ week.” For example, she wouldn’t turn down a child.
Everyone, including stars like Emma Watson, has a right to privacy. With Watson being an iconic figure, it inevitable that she will always be in the spotlight; however, that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t have right to a public life and a private one. If Watson doesn’t want her picture taken, then she has every right not to. Besides, it’s not as though she is implementing such rules out of the coldness of her heart: she is taking control of the situation and is doing it for her own security—as she should! Just another reason to further respect such an admirable young woman.