Video:Emma Watson Interview - The Tale of Despereaux

SHARE ON                

Transcript:Emma Watson Interview - The Tale of Despereaux

Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the World Premiere of The Tale of Despereaux.

Emma Watson – The Voice of 'Princess Pea' in The Tale of Despereaux

So tell me about playing a princess. How do you tap into your inner princess?

Emma Watson: "Gosh, I think every girl practiced being a princess when they were younger and wants to be a princess, so it kind of came naturally."

And the appeal of doing a voice in an animated film?

Emma Watson: "More than, 'Oh, wouldn't it be great to do an animated film,' I loved the script and I love the book. I just thought it was so charming and I just really want to be a part of it."

What touched your heart about it?

Emma Watson: "Just Despereaux's such a charming hero. He's so unlikely. He's a mouse. He's got these big ears, he's really small, and yet his heart is in the right place and he makes a massive difference, which I think is just such a nice message."

Do you get to look at storyboards or how do you do your voice?

Emma Watson: "No. It's very much you have the script and the voice comes first and then the animation comes second, so you have to be quite imaginative I guess to really bring the character to life because you don't have anything to look at."

Can you change up the words? Are you allowed to switch things around?

Emma Watson: "A little bit, yeah, but I think that Gary [Ross] thought that he wanted to keep it as close to the book as he could and so a little bit but not a huge amount."

Now you had read the book before you got the script?

Emma Watson: "No, I read the book afterwards."

How close are they? For people who read the book, are they going to see the exact same thing on the screen?

Emma Watson: "Speaking from experience I know that it's very hard to translate a book into a film without making it like a 10 hour film. Because if you keep everything that's in the book, then it's just going to go on forever, and it's just not possible. So things do have to go and be cut, but I really think that Gary really captured the spirit of the book and everything that Kate [DiCamillo] wanted to express is in the film. She was at the press conference yesterday and she seemed thrilled with the whole thing so as an actress, as part of the film, you can't really ask for more."

How bittersweet is it to be finishing up Harry Potter?

Emma Watson: "You just said the words for me. It's bittersweet. It will be very sad and strange because it's been my life really, but also very exciting, really. I loved working on Despereaux. I loved working with new people and going on to new projects. So it's very exciting, really."

More on The Tale of Despereaux:

The Tale of Despereaux Photos

The Tale of Despereaux Poster, Trailer, and Credits