Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson

After leaving school, Watson took a gap year to film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows beginning in February 2009, but said she "definitely wanted to go to university". Despite numerous contradictory news stories, some from highly reputable sources, claiming that she would "definitely" attend Trinity College, Cambridge; Columbia University; Brown University or Yale University, Watson was reluctant to commit publicly to any one institution, saying that she would announce her decision first on her official website. In interviews with Jonathan Ross and David Letterman in July 2009, she confirmed that she was planning to study liberal arts in the United States, saying that – having missed so much school as a child for filming – the "broad curriculum" of American higher education appealed to her more than British universities, "where you have to just choose one thing to study for three years". In July 2009, after a second storm of rumour, The Providence Journal reported that Watson had "grudgingly admitted" that she had chosen Brown University, located in Providence, Rhode Island. Watson defended her attempts to avoid announcing her choice of university – accidentally slipped by Daniel Radcliffe and producer David Heyman, during interviews publicising the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and finally confirmed in September 2009 after the university's academic year had started – saying that she "wanted to be normal. ... I want to do it properly, like everyone else. As long as I don't walk in and see ... Harry Potter posters everywhere, I'll be fine."
As of July 2007, Watson's work in the Harry Potter series had earned her more than £10 million, and she acknowledged she would never have to work for money again. In March 2009 she was ranked 6th on the Forbes list of "Most Valuable Young Stars", and in February 2010 she was named as Hollywood's highest paid female star, having earned an estimated £19 million in 2009. However, she has declined to leave school to become a full-time actress, saying "People can't understand why I don't want to ... but school life keeps me in touch with my friends. It keeps me in touch with reality." She has been positive about working as a child actress, saying her parents and colleagues helped make her experience a positive one. Watson enjoys a close friendship with her fellow Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, describing them as a "unique support system" for the stresses of film work, and saying that, after working with them for the ten years of the film series, "they really are like my siblings".
Watson lists her interests as dancing, singing, field hockey, tennis, art, and she supports the Wild Trout Trust. She describes herself as "a bit of a feminist", and admires fellow actors Johnny Depp and Julia Roberts.