Tom Felton Talks “2:22 A Ghost Story” and Being Mistaken for Ryan Gosling
Following in the footsteps of many Wizarding World alumni before him, Tom Felton is treading the boards with his West End debut in 2:22 A Ghost Story at London’s Criterion Theatre. While promoting the show, the actor shed insight into his experience working on the stage, his time as Draco Malfoy, and being mistaken for Ryan Gosling.
2:22 A Ghost Story stars Felton and Doctor Who‘s Mandip Gill as married couple Sam and Jenny. Jenny is certain that the couple’s new home is haunted, but Sam is skeptical. While promoting the play, the costars opened up about their views on the paranormal. Felton confessed that, like his character, he is “very, very skeptical” about ghosts but admits that “there’s a lot more out there that we don’t know about.”
Talking to Digital Spy, Felton also shared that he hopes starring alongside Gill will bring both Harry Potter and Doctor Who fans to the theater.
There is definitely a cross pollination of fans [who] love both Potter and [t]he Doctor. I think that the fans are an incredibly tight group of people [who] support each other and go to all these different things.
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Reflecting on his experience of starting his career within the Harry Potter franchise, Felton told the Guardian that he never expected to continue with the franchise as long as he did.
We were going to make two initially. If, after the second, the kids still looked young enough, maybe we’d do a third. Then a fourth. It went on like that. We never signed up for 12 years. At some point, I just assumed they’d replace us with decent actors, but they never did.
He credits many of his Potter costars for guiding him throughout his career. Jason Isaacs, who portrayed Lucius Malfoy in the films, was a significant mentor to him. “Jason was a driving force in getting rid of my impostor syndrome,” he said.
Felton revealed to Digital Spy that he would be willing to reunite with Daniel Radcliffe on the big screen under one particular condition:
Daniel and I have often joked about the idea of when we do work together again, he’ll be the villain, and I’ll be the hero.
As previously reported, Felton reached out to Radcliffe and Matthew Lewis for stage advice before his West End debut. While speaking with the Guardian, he further proved that the Potter cast remains incredibly supportive of one another.
I’ve always been their biggest cheerleader. I remember seeing Daniel on Broadway for the first time; there was a Draco-esque moment: f***ing hell, he’s just so good. I wasn’t comparing myself, but it kicked me into gear.
He did, however, compare himself to his costars Rupert Grint and Emma Watson when it comes to their appearances today. Speaking with the Evening Standard, Felton described how fan encounters have changed since he has gotten older.
Obviously, I’ve aged a fair bit, so there are more people whispering now ‘look at that guy; he looks like a dodgy old Draco,’ versus Rupert and Emma, who look almost the same.’
In one of the more peculiar fan interactions, Felton described one encounter in which a fan mistook him for Ryan Gosling. He was quite flattered by the mistake, saying, “It was like, ‘Can I get that in writing?'”
With making his West End debut, writing a memoir, and getting mistaken for Ryan Gosling, Tom Felton certainly has a lot to be excited about.