The 15 Best Emma Watson Roles

Emma Watson’s screen work stretches from fantasy megahits to intimate character studies, with lead turns, key ensembles, and even a few unexpected voice and cameo appearances. Across franchises, prestige dramas, indies, and TV, she has taken on students and rebels, dreamers and detectives, showing range across genres while collaborating with major directors and award-winning casts.

This list rounds up her most notable movies and shows, pulling together concise details about each project and the role she played. You’ll find plot essentials, creators, co-stars, production context, box-office or release details, and character specifics—everything you need to place each performance in her career and decide what to watch next.

‘Beauty and the Beast’ (2017) – Belle

Disney’s live-action adaptation of the animated classic features Emma Watson as Belle, a book-loving inventor’s daughter who volunteers to take her father’s place in the Beast’s enchanted castle. Directed by Bill Condon, the film pairs Watson with Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Kevin Kline, and an ensemble of voice performances that bring the castle’s residents to life, with new and classic songs composed by Alan Menken and lyricists Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, plus additional lyrics for original numbers.

Watson’s Belle is central to expanded backstory and character beats, including scenes that deepen the curse’s origins and Belle’s relationship with her father, Maurice. The production emphasized practical sets and large-scale musical staging, with choreography and costuming designed to echo the animated film while adding new sequences such as ‘Days in the Sun’ and ‘Evermore,’ and the release set records for a musical’s global box office.

‘Little Women’ (2019) – Meg March

Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel interweaves timelines to follow the March sisters—Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy—across childhood and early adulthood in Concord and New York. Watson plays Meg, the eldest sister, alongside Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Timothée Chalamet, Laura Dern, and Meryl Streep, with a screenplay that moves between past and present to highlight each sister’s choices.

Meg’s storyline foregrounds themes of marriage, domestic economy, and performance, including her acting ambitions and decisions about family and work. The film’s production design and costuming emphasize period detail across two distinct color palettes for the timelines, and the ensemble received awards attention with multiple nominations for the film’s writing, costumes, and performances.

‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower’ (2012) – Sam

Based on Stephen Chbosky’s novel and directed by the author, the coming-of-age drama follows Charlie, a shy first-year high-school student who is taken under the wing of eccentric seniors Sam and Patrick. Watson’s Sam appears opposite Logan Lerman and Ezra Miller, with a soundtrack curated to mirror the book’s mixtape culture and a narrative built around friendship, trauma, and first love.

Sam’s arc includes mentorship, college applications, and a complicated dating history that shapes her guidance of Charlie. Production took place primarily in and around Pittsburgh, capturing locations such as the Fort Pitt Tunnel drive that became one of the film’s signature set-pieces, and the adaptation preserves major epistolary elements by translating letters and voiceovers into scenes.

‘The Bling Ring’ (2013) – Nicki Moore

Sofia Coppola’s crime drama is inspired by the true-crime story of a group of Los Angeles teens who burglarized celebrity homes. Watson plays Nicki, a home-schooled, image-driven teen influenced by reality-TV culture, acting alongside Katie Chang, Israel Broussard, Taissa Farmiga, and Claire Julien, with cameos from personalities connected to the real events.

The production filmed in Los Angeles, including sequences staged in celebrity neighborhoods and brand-heavy spaces to underscore the story’s focus on status and consumerism. Watson’s character participates in planning and executing break-ins and later navigates media exposure and legal fallout, with dialogue and scenes drawing from public records and interviews related to the case’s coverage.

‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’ (2011) – Hermione Granger

The concluding chapter of the wizarding saga brings the fight to Hogwarts, where Harry, Hermione, and Ron pursue the last Horcruxes and face Voldemort’s forces. Directed by David Yates, the film features a large ensemble including Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, and many returning cast members, culminating the multi-film narrative.

Hermione’s role includes strategic planning, the Gringotts break-in with disguises and dragon escape, and the final battle’s operations within the castle. The production utilized large-scale effects, practical sets reconstructed at Leavesden, and extensive stunt work for the Battle of Hogwarts, and the release set franchise records for opening-weekend and global grosses upon release.

‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’ (2004) – Hermione Granger

This installment introduces Sirius Black and the Dementors while shifting the series toward a darker tone under director Alfonso Cuarón. Watson returns as Hermione alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, with new cast members including Gary Oldman, David Thewlis, and Michael Gambon, and the story incorporates time-turning mechanics central to the climax.

Hermione’s academic rigor and moral decisions drive key plot turns, from using the Time-Turner to rescue Buckbeak to confronting perceived betrayals among friends. Filming featured new costume approaches, location shoots across the Scottish Highlands, and a redesigned visual language for Hogwarts and its surroundings, elements that influenced the look of later entries.

‘Noah’ (2014) – Ila

Darren Aronofsky’s epic reimagines the biblical narrative with Russell Crowe as Noah, Jennifer Connelly as Naameh, and Emma Watson as Ila, an adopted member of Noah’s family. The film blends mythic storytelling with grounded survival elements, adding characters not present in the source text to explore moral debates about creation, justice, and mercy.

Watson’s Ila has a central emotional arc involving family, fertility, and the ethical dilemmas posed by the flood. Production combined large practical ark sets, location shoots in Iceland, and visual effects to depict antediluvian landscapes and the deluge, and the release generated discussion for its interpretive choices and world-building.

‘Colonia’ (2015) – Lena

This political-thriller follows Lena and Daniel, a young couple separated during a military coup; Lena infiltrates a cult-like settlement called Colonia Dignidad to rescue him. Directed by Florian Gallenberger and co-starring Daniel Brühl and Michael Nyqvist, the film draws on accounts of the real enclave’s operations and its collaboration with state security forces.

Watson’s Lena undergoes indoctrination routines and labor assignments to gain access within the settlement, while the narrative outlines the group’s hierarchy, surveillance, and punishment systems. Filming took place in Luxembourg, Germany, and South America–inspired locations, and the production consulted historical materials to stage the compound’s layout and period details.

‘The Circle’ (2017) – Mae Holland

In this tech-thriller adapted from Dave Eggers’ novel, Mae joins a powerful social-media company and rises through the ranks as the firm pushes total transparency initiatives. Directed by James Ponsoldt and co-starring Tom Hanks, John Boyega, Karen Gillan, and Patton Oswalt, the film examines data collection, surveillance, and corporate culture.

Mae’s trajectory includes product demos, audience-driven feedback sessions, and a transition to a life-streamed existence that tests boundaries between public and private life. Production incorporated real campuses and conference-style events to depict keynotes, rollouts, and internal meetings, with on-screen UI elements designed to visualize engagement metrics and live interactions.

‘Regression’ (2015) – Angela Gray

Alejandro Amenábar’s psychological thriller centers on a criminal investigation in a small Midwestern town where Angela accuses family members of abuse tied to alleged cult activity. Ethan Hawke plays the investigating detective, with Watson as Angela and David Thewlis as a psychologist assisting the case, blending police-procedural elements with memory-focused therapy sessions.

Angela’s statements and subsequent interviews drive the inquiry, while the film explores the reliability of recovered memories and mass-panic phenomena. The production employs subdued lighting, rural locations, and sound design meant to underscore uncertainty and fear, and the screenplay engages with documented controversies around suggestion and therapeutic techniques.

‘Ballet Shoes’ (2007) – Pauline Fossil

This television film adapts Noel Streatfeild’s novel about three orphaned sisters—Pauline, Petrova, and Posy—adopted by an eccentric explorer and raised in London. Watson portrays Pauline, the sister drawn to acting, with Yasmin Paige and Lucy Boynton as her siblings, and support from Victoria Wood, Emilia Fox, and Richard Griffiths in a period ensemble.

Pauline’s story includes acceptance into a stage school, auditions, and the pressures of performing to support the household, highlighting the sisters’ vow to “put their names in the history books.” Costumes and sets reconstruct London neighborhoods, classrooms, and theaters, and the adaptation maintains the novel’s balance between family logistics and stagecraft.

‘The Tale of Despereaux’ (2008) – Princess Pea (voice)

This animated feature adapts Kate DiCamillo’s book about a courageous mouse who befriends Princess Pea and confronts a kingdom’s culture of fear. Watson voices the princess alongside Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman, Tracey Ullman, and Stanley Tucci, with a blend of hand-drawn-inspired textures and computer animation.

Princess Pea’s interactions with Despereaux and other characters motivate reconciliations that restore light and storytelling to the realm. The production emphasized storybook aesthetics, with lighting and color shifts representing hope and gloom, and the score supports the fairy-tale tone through leitmotifs tied to main characters and locations.

‘My Week with Marilyn’ (2011) – Lucy

Set during the making of ‘The Prince and the Showgirl,’ this drama follows a young production assistant who becomes close to Marilyn Monroe during a film shoot in England. Watson plays Lucy, a wardrobe assistant, in a cast that includes Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench, and Dominic Cooper, with detailed recreations of studio spaces and period costumes.

Lucy’s scenes depict the rhythms of a film set—fittings, continuity, and department coordination—offering a grounded perspective on production routines and interpersonal dynamics. The film’s awards run highlighted acting and craft categories, and the narrative incorporates memoir-based source material to shape character relationships and behind-the-scenes events.

‘This Is the End’ (2013) – Emma Watson

This self-referential disaster comedy assembles actors playing versions of themselves during an apocalyptic event in Los Angeles. Watson appears as herself in a sequence involving survival planning at James Franco’s house, joining a cast that includes Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, and Danny McBride, with sequences that blend scripted material and improvisation.

Her cameo centers on boundaries, trust, and resource management within the group, generating a memorable set-piece about house rules and consent. Production used a single primary location for much of the action, with visual effects extending the devastation outside, and the film’s marketing emphasized its meta-comedic premise and ensemble chemistry.

‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ (2001) – Hermione Granger

The series opener introduces the wizarding world, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the trio of Harry, Hermione, and Ron as they uncover the mystery surrounding a hidden object. Directed by Chris Columbus and adapted from J.K. Rowling’s novel, the film features production design that established iconic locations such as the Great Hall, Gryffindor Tower, and Diagon Alley.

Hermione’s early characterization includes mastery of spells, encyclopedic knowledge, and key problem-solving in challenges like the Winged Keys and potions logic test. Casting, costuming, and location shoots across English cathedrals and colleges formed the foundation for the franchise’s look, with practical effects, animatronics, and early digital work introducing creatures and magic systems.

‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’ (2002) – Hermione Granger

The second chapter follows the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets, a series of petrifications at Hogwarts, and the revelation of Tom Riddle’s past via a possessed diary. Watson returns alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, with set pieces including the Whomping Willow encounter and the basilisk showdown beneath the school.

Hermione’s investigations into the nature of the attacks—researching creatures and decoding clues—prove pivotal to identifying the threat. Production expanded creature work with animatronics and visual effects for the basilisk and house-elves, while sets and locations broadened the school’s geography to support larger action sequences.

‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ (2005) – Hermione Granger

This entry centers on an international tournament hosted at Hogwarts, with tasks involving dragons, underwater rescue, and a maze that culminates in a graveyard confrontation. The film introduces visiting schools and new characters, enlarging the cast and scope of the series.

Hermione is active in organizing the social side of school life, including preparations around the Yule Ball, and participates in supporting research for the tournament tasks. The production mounted large-scale stunts and effects for each challenge and staged extensive ballroom scenes with choreography and costuming that reflect character dynamics.

‘The Vicar of Dibley’ (2015) – Herself (cameo)

Watson appears as herself in a special sketch segment connected to a charity broadcast, joining the long-running British sitcom’s characters for a brief comedic appearance. The segment is structured around a series of guest cameos, integrating real-world figures into the show’s format.

Her appearance is framed as a short, scripted interaction aligned with the sketch’s theme, adding a TV credit outside her film work. The production uses the show’s established set and pacing, with quick-cut humor and a focus on dialogue-driven exchanges suited to cameo participation.

Share your own favorites and where you first saw them in the comments!