Katie Leung has no interest in reliving her days at Hogwarts.
The Bridgerton actress, who portrayed Cho Chang in five Harry Potter films, recently explained why she wouldn’t want to return to the chapter of her life when she was immersed in the wizarding world.
“I was so young at the time, and I was so easily influenced by what people would say about me because I didn’t know who I was,” she told Entertainment Tonight of her time in the fantasy franchise. “So I’ve come into Bridgerton having a really healthy focus on the work.”
Leung indicated that she prefers working on Bridgerton to shooting Harry Potter. “I’m so glad I’m here. I would not want to go back to that time,” she said. “Not because I had a bad time or anything, but it’s just really nice when you know who you are, and I’m still figuring that out, but I’m a bit closer.”
Katie Leung on ‘Bridgerton’
Credit: Liam Daniel/Netflix
Leung made her screen debut as Cho in 2005’s Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. She reprised the role in 2007’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix — in which she memorably gave Daniel Radcliffe’s Harry his first kiss — and returned again in 2009’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, 2010’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, and 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2.
The actress, who began playing Lady Araminta Gun in Bridgerton‘s fourth season, recently shared the advice she’d give to whoever plays Cho in HBO’s forthcoming Harry Potter TV series.
“For anybody really, [whatever] stage in their life, [my advice is] just to be themselves, because that’s what makes them unique,” Leung said. “And to not let the kind of noise of other people get to you, because what you have already is a gift, and you should really just try and hold onto that.”
Robert Pattinson and Katie Leung in 2005’s ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’
Credit: Murray Close/Warner Bros.
Leung recently discussed her mixed feelings about her early Potter fame in an interview with The Guardian. “Being in the spotlight from that age, when you’re already insecure, was difficult, to say the least,” she said. “At the time, I was having a lot of fun. I thought, ‘This is different from school,’ and I really did not enjoy school. So it was a way to escape. I’m still trying to figure it out, really, how it affected me.”
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The actress also said she found hurtful racist comments about her online after she made her Potter debut. “At that age, you’re curious,” she said. “I remember being very curious about what people were saying about me, and I was googling myself. Nobody could have stopped me, because I was old enough to make up my own mind.”
Leung added that she didn’t fully process the impact of the online hate. “I think it just sat with me, and it affected me in ways like, ‘Oh yeah, I made that decision because people were saying this about me,'” she said. “It probably made me less outgoing. I was very self-aware of what was coming out of my mouth.”
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