‘Harry Potter’ Stopped Robert Pattinson From Going to College
Years before Robert Pattinson portrayed the brooding vampire Edward Cullen in the Twilight movies, he was a part of another film franchise. Long-time fans of The Batman actor will recall that Pattinson had a coveted role in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. In the film, Pattinson portrayed golden-boy Cedric Diggory. While the role wasn’t massive, it would alter the course of Pattinson’s life and even prevent him from going to college.
Robert Pattinson was the same age as Cedric Diggory while filming
Pattinson was actually the same age as Cedric when he was filming Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The actor was just 17, and the film would serve as his second professional job. Prior to portraying the honest Hufflepuff, Pattinson had plans to go to college. However, being in the movie would cause his life to go in a new direction.
How ‘Harry Potter’ stopped ‘The Batman’ actor from going to college
“It was so nice to be a part of it,” Pattinson shared of his Harry Potter experience while speaking to Time Out. “That, more than anything, changed my life. It’s the reason I didn’t go to university.” But why did the film stop Pattinson from going to college? Turns out the film’s shooting schedule conflicted with Pattinson’s collegiate plans.
“It went so far over schedule, I couldn’t go,” Pattinson explained. “It was supposed to be four months, but it ended up being 10 or 11. I’d turn up to set every day but not work for weeks at a time. I was 17 and I was the only person who wasn’t in school. I’d just hang about.”
Pattinson credits ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ as the reason he pursued acting professionally
But it seems as if being on set was no hardship to Pattinson. In fact, the actor has been especially candid about the environment of Harry Potter and the Goble of Fire being warm and welcoming. While The Lighthouse actor may not have been in school, many of his castmates were, and Pattinson was impressed with how school was prioritized for his fellow actors.
“It was a really nice environment on Harry Potter, ” Pattinson explained in an interview with HFPA. “Even compared to movies I’ve done since, it was very protected, the way the kids were treated. I’ve watched movies where you see a kid who’s got their tutor and it doesn’t exactly seem like they’re really going to school. I mean, it’s just kind of [like] they are fulfilling a legal requirement. But in Harry Potter, it was like they were at school and they were kind of doing work at the same time.”
Harry Potter may be the reason that Pattinson didn’t go to college, but it’s also the reason he’s a professional actor. The New Moon alum credits the blockbuster as the project that cemented his decision to pursue a career in entertainment. “It was really special and I really like that movie…I wouldn’t be acting if it wasn’t for that.”
