Emma Watson

Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson born 15 April 1990 is an English actress and activist She has gained recognition for her roles in both blockbusters and independent films as well as her womens rights work Watson has been ranked among the worlds highestpaid actresses by Forbes and Vanity Fair and was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2015 Watson attended the Dragon School and trained in acting at the Oxford branch of Stagecoach Theatre Arts As a child she rose to stardom after landing her first professional acting role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter film series having acted only in school plays previously Watson also starred in the 2007 television adaptation of the novel Ballet Shoes and lent her voice to The Tale of Despereaux 2008 After the final Harry Potter film she took on a supporting role in My Week with Marilyn 2011 before starring as Sam a flirtatious freespirited student in The Perks of Being a Wallflower 2012 to critical success Further acclaim came from portraying Alexis Neiers in Sofia Coppolas The Bling Ring 2013 and the titular characters adoptive daughter in the biblical epic Noah That same year Watson was honoured by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts winning British Artist of the Year She also starred as Belle in the musical romantic fantasy Beauty and the Beast 2017 which ranks among the highestgrossing films of all time and Meg March in the comingofage drama Little Women 2019 From 2011 to 2014 Watson split her time between working on films and continuing her education graduating from Brown University with a bachelors degree in English literature in May 2014 That year she was appointed a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and helped launch the UN Women campaign HeForShe which advocates for gender equality In 2018 she helped launch Times Up UK as a founding member Watson was appointed to a G7 advisory body for womens rights in 2019 consulting with leaders on foreign policy Her modelling work has included campaigns for Burberry and Lancôme She also lent her name to a clothing line for the sustainable brand People Tree In 2020 she joined the board of directors of Kering a luxury brand group in her capacity as an advocate for sustainable fashion