Daniel Radcliffe Reveals The Similarities Between The Lost City And Harry Potter - Exclusive
Acclaimed actor Daniel Radcliffe's career was launched into the stratosphere, of course, with the golden opportunity to play the titular role the "Harry Potter" movie saga, based on author J.K. Rowling's mega-bestselling book series. The eight-movie blockbuster series kicked off in 2001 with "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." and concluded with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2" in 2011, and in the process, it solidified the "Potter" novels' position as a set of literary classics.
Radcliffe's career has only grown and become more diverse since the "Harry Potter" films, as the actor has not only ventured into the London and Broadway stages, but he's also examined several genres in film. Radcliffe has played everything from horror ("The Woman in Black") and biographical drama ("Kill Your Darlings") to fantasy comedy ("Swiss Army Man") and action comedy ("Now You See Me 2"). Up next, Radcliffe is taking on one of his biggest career challenges to date by playing the lead role in "Weird: The Al Yankovic Story," a biopic about the famed comedic musician.
Currently, the actor has also embarked on a romantic comedy adventure opposite Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum in "The Lost City." In the film, now in theaters, Radcliffe plays Abigail Fairfax, a crackpot billionaire who kidnaps a successful romance novelist, Loretta Sage (Bullock), believing the author (and former archeological student) can decipher clues to find the mythical "Crown of Fire" — a priceless artifact hidden in ancient city that she wrote about in her newest novel, "The Lost City of D." Sage's only hope of being saved from Fairfax is her Fabio-like cover model Alan Caprison (Tatum), who unfortunately doesn't quite share the same dashing qualities as her romantic novels' hero, Dash McMahon.
While the storylines of the two films are dramatically different, Radcliffe said he still finds themes in "The Lost City" relevant to his time on "Harry Potter," and he revealed them to Looper in an exclusive interview.
Radcliffe says 'The Lost City' and 'Harry Potter' share common goals
Once playing that boy wizard who previously came to life from the pages of "Harry Potter," Radcliffe's character in "The Lost City" is unique in that Abigail Fairfax is enveloped in a tale rooted in a book. Making the situation even more ironic, by kidnapping Loretta Sage and jetting her off to a remote jungle to find his treasure, "The Lost City" effectively becomes one of the adventures the author has written about in her romantic novels.
As such, Radcliffe told Looper that he found similarities between "The Lost City" and "Harry Potter" that one wouldn't immediately suspect. Especially resonant is a line by Tatum's character, Alan, where he chastises Sage after she continues to call her writing "schlock." Essentially, Alan tells the author that she's insulting her readers by belittling material that brings them happiness — assertions that Radcliffe believes are valid in real life.
"Romance novels are not what I read, generally. I've read some very romantic love stories and things, but so much of the genre — it's not necessarily my thing, but, as Channing says in the movie — it's a really wonderful point. Anything that makes people that happy is something you can only be proud to be associated with," Radcliffe observed. "I feel, honestly, very similarly about 'Potter.' There's some work in there that I find really embarrassing to watch because I was a kid, and its embarrassing kid-acting, but ultimately, if they are making so many people so happy, it actually can only be a really wonderful thing. I fully agree with Channing's character there."
Directed by Aaron Nee and Adam Nee, and also starring Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Oscar Nunez, Patti Harrison, and Brad Pitt, "The Lost City" is now in theaters.