It’s the confession Harry Potter fans have been waiting two decades to hear. While Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger were bitter rivals on screen, the real-life bond between Tom Felton and Emma Watson has always been much more magical—and complicated.
In his emotional new memoir, Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard, Felton is finally addressing the “Dramione” rumors that have swirled since the pair first stepped onto the set of The Sorcerer’s Stone.
The -year-old actor admits that while Watson famously had a crush on him when she was nine and he was , his own feelings were deep, though perhaps not exactly what shippers expected.
“I’ve always had a secret love for Emma, though not perhaps in the way that people might want to hear,” Felton writes in a passage that has quickly gone viral on TikTok and X.
He continues with a revelation that sent shockwaves through the fandom: “That isn’t to say that there’s never been a spark between us. There most definitely has, only at different times.”
Despite that spark, Felton clarifies the nature of their soulmate-level connection. “I don’t think I was ever in love with Emma, but I loved and admired her as a person in a way that I could never explain to anybody else… we were kindred spirits,” he explains.
The road to “kindred spirits” wasn’t always smooth, however. Felton gets incredibly vulnerable about their rocky start, recalling a time when he and the other boys acted like “s— boys” by sniggering at a dance routine a young Watson had choreographed.
“I did feel like a bit of a d—, and rightly so,” Felton admits, noting that a hair and makeup artist eventually had to put him in his place.
Since those awkward early years, the duo has become each other’s biggest support system. Felton recently told The Independent that it was actually Watson who encouraged him to speak openly about his mental health struggles in the book.
“Not just because it was cathartic for me,” he shared. “But also in the hope that sharing those parts of my story will help others.”
From their sweet reunion in the Harry Potter th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts special to their frequent Instagram cameos together, it’s clear these two are for life. Whether they are skateboarding together or supporting each other’s careers—from Watson’s turn in Little Women to Felton’s role on The Flash—this “secret love” is the real deal.
Would you like me to find the most adorable ‘Dramione’ throwback photos from Tom and Emma’s latest reunions?
