Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood) and Scarlett Byrne (Pansy Parkinson) were at this year’s LeakyCon in Orlando. They’d shown up there in time to join fans for the midnight premiere at Universal Citywalk, had toured the Wizarding World and ridden the rides after hours. And STILL they got up in time to chat with the press. TROUPERS.
Evanna: “I don’t know how I’m going to feel NEXT week.
Scarlett: “We’ll have a lot of time to think about that.”
Evanna: “Next week is going to be SO quiet.”
Scarlett: “I KNOW.”
Evanna: “It’s going to be this post-Potter trauma for all us, I think. With all the running around to premieres, and the high emotions of the cast and the fans — everybody so happy and excited, it’s going to be a bit of a let-down. We went to a screening (Thursday night) here with the BIGGEST fans in the world. Much better than the premiere, because the reactions were so huge. Just so much fun.
“But now, I’m on Twitter, and everyone is saying how sad they’re becoming that it’s all over. This thing we’ve all been going through is over, and now we’re going through the grief of losing it together. But, it’s OK.
What about the future? Any hope on your part that the story will somehow go on? Done any arm-twisting on Jo Rowling?
Evanna: I don’t know. At the premiere, she kind of became overwhelmed and said, ‘Oh Hell, I’ll just write ANOTHER one!’” She didn’t mean that. Joking. She’s been saying all along that this was it.
I don’t know where she would go with this because Harry Potter’s story is a very important period in wizarding history. It’s the Ultimate Battle in wizarding history. No one else’s story will be quite so extraordinary. We will have to guess what happens to the other kids. I think she’ll leave it there. But I would LOVE a Luna spinoff series. But I don’t see her doing it. Do you?
Scarlett : The whole thing’s just been so overwhelming that i haven’t had time to think about it. It’s been extraordinary, coming out here. Just meeting the most passionate fans and realizing this work we did means the world to them. At the screening here at midnight, I’ve never experienced anything like that in my life. It’s so special. But we’ll see.
Evanna: Journalists keep saying, ‘This is the END.’ Like it’s truly over. But it’s not. Because I’ve made so many friends through Harry Potter. I am such a fan, a geek. I’d probably be here even if I hadn’t been in the movies. I’m enjoying this convention because it brings out my inner geek, the one I pretend to not be. That’s who I was all those years I was pretending I was already cast in the movies before I actually tried for it.
“I don’t feel it’s going to have some abrupt end. I feel that this is the height. It’s in vogue at the moment. But everyone just loves it so much that you can’t just cut that part of your life out.
Scarlett – It’s not the end, because the film will come out on DVD and there’ll be another mass of attention. And this theme park is pretty nice, so that will keep it alive.
Evanna: There’s an exhibition going ’round, too.
What do you think of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter?
Scarlett: It looks like it does on the set. And since we saw it at night, it looks even more like the real thing.
Evanna: The sets are all in different parts of this huge warehouse. The best sets only have three walls on them. So it doesn’t look as real. But here, you get this amazing feeling as you actually walk into the castle — into Hogwarts, or down to the sweet shop or Ollivander’s in the village.
Scarlett: It felt very authentic.
Evanna: EXCEPT for the temperature.
You two have been VERY spoiled. You have been able to make a series of films with the cream of British and Irish acting. Acting royalty. How do you follow this?
Evanna: don’t think there’s any point WORRYING about what’s next and being sad about it. We’ve been so privileged. And we’ve gotten such a brilliant start to our acting careers — I want to continue, I don’t know if Scarlett does — a good head start, that even if it is hard to work your way into other roles, we have no room to complain.
“I came onto this with no acting experience. Most actors have to work their way up through TV commercials and plays. I didn’t have any of that. I got this part and it came with this amazing fan-base of support. I feel positive about the future. Yeah, it might be hard to break out of this iconic role. But we’ve got time. And we’ve been given this great opportunity. I am just so grateful to be associated with Harry Potter.
Scarlett: I’m just thrilled to have been a part of it all. I never would have dreamed that I would get to be a part of something that’s so huge, a phenomenon. To get your first experiences with this amazing cast and this huge crew, you have to know how lucky you’ve been and appreciate it.
You’ve been sharing scenes with some of the greatest actors who have ever lived. Anything you picked up from any of your co-stars that will help you in your future careers? Who inspired you?
Evanna: “I really love Jason Isaacs and Mark Williams. LOVE them. Such nice guys. Very friendly. No airs put on. We were in the same makeup room every morning for the big Hogwarts battle scenes. I’d be half-asleep, exhausted, and they were just BRIGHT and upbeat and funny. They were chirpy and alive and how playful. They were getting to ACT. My [actor] parents are about the same age as them, and they’re not like that at all. They’re serious, rationalizing why a character would do this or that. But seeing Jason and Mark go with their guts and play. PLAY. they sing. They break into accents. They give each other a terrible time. Because it’s fun. I’ve been on tour with them to premieres and all and I’ve learned so much from them. When we were preparing for the French premiere, Mark was singing. He was getting us all worked up. ‘What can we SING? Something FRENCH!’
“That’s what I learned from them. Be playful. Be yourself. Be experimental. Have fun with it.
“Jason Isaacs quoted this line to me, ‘Perfectionism is the enemy of creativity.’ That’s so true. You can’t be worrying about hitting that one perfect take.
Scarlett: Watching everyone was the best acting school you could ever want. It was like a huge playground on the set, and in the dressing rooms, you’ve never seen such happy people. No matter what role they had, everyone seemed so grateful to be there and that showed, I think. I came in on the sixth film and I was a bit nervous, at the beginning. But they welcomed me into the family. If nothing else happens, I’ll still have those amazing experiences in my life to remember.
Conventions — fans. Can you envision yourself meeting fans, talking about this, 34 years later, the way Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and those “Star Wars” folks do at the Star Wars Celebrations they have here in Orlando?
Scarlett: Has it been 34 years? How many show up?
Over 30,000 for the last one.
Scarlett: Oh my GOD.
Evanna: I LOVE that idea. The premieres are all very lovely and all, but you don’t get to interact with the fans. There’s a barrier between you and you’re meant to keep that there.
Scarlett: But we’ve been mingling with people, fans who know the characters, know the books and movies.
Evanna: I think a lot of fans, they might look at us as a couple of movie stars dropping in on them. But we’re fans, too. Geeks, actually. And you see how creative all these other people are.
Scarlett: We met all these artists, bands, all these creative people. People doing Harry Potter origami. I don’t want to leave!
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