Culture news “I didn’t like it” This French actress hated dubbing Emma Watson in the Harry Potter saga at the cinema
Being the voice of a character in an iconic saga seems like a real dream, but this actress didn’t enjoy the experience.
Harry Potter, a saga that changed lives
After the phenomenal success of the books in the late 90s, a film adaptation quickly saw the light of day. Thus, for a decade, fans around the world were able to discover the adventures of the wizard with round glasses on the big screen. Many grew up with the different characters, which is why it was difficult to part with them in 2011 for the eighth and final feature film which concludes the saga. Even if an HBO reboot in series form is planned for 2026, the first films will still be considered iconic by a large number of fans.
This saga changed the lives of several people, like the main actors. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson enjoy great notoriety after playing this trio, just like Tom Felton who was for more than ten years the rival of the scarred wizard. However, the Harry Potter saga changed the lives not only of the actors, but also of the voice actors who lent their voices to the main characters. The latter, who lived in the shadow of the actors they were dubbing (and still dubbing for some), were still in the spotlight when the feature films were released. Unfortunately, not all of them have good memories of this unique experience.
Manon Azem, Hermione’s voice actress, does not have good memories of her experience
Recently, those who listen
Movement on the radio heard a familiar voice, that of Manon Azem. This 33-year-old actress regularly dubs actress Debby Ryan in addition to having been the voice of Emma Watson in the Harry Potter saga. While this experience seems like a dream, she didn’t experience it that way. Unfortunately, she especially suffered enormous pressure while she was still very young :
At the time, there were not the regulations that there are today with children. They called me at ten o’clock in the evening, I waited two hours in the studios, then they picked us up and finished at midnight. It was a bit crazy and I was super stressed.
Subsequently, she also confided that the people who supervised the dubbing were not happy with her voice which naturally became deeper. She was therefore ordered to lighten her voice, which did not make her feel comfortable. In addition, she was forced to have the same intonation as Emma Watson, which doesn’t necessarily work in French. In short, she was not in agreement with the artistic direction and did not have a particularly pleasant experience : “I never bragged about it. There was such enthusiasm that I didn’t dare say: ‘By the way, guys, I didn’t like it.'” Subsequently, she continued her acting career, dubbing other characters like Danielle Van De Kamp in Desperate Housewives. Recently, it is possible to see her in the series Detox on Netflix.