Emma Watson has a memorable cameo in This is the End, but the Harry Potter actress had a line when it came to what she was willing to do in Seth Rogen's absurd apocalypse comedy. This is the End's title has a double meaning in that its plot revolves around the end of the world and that it serves as the end of the Aptovian-era of comedy. The film's stars have all been involved in several Judd Apatow projects and many offshoots. This comic universe has dragged in everyone from Harold Ramis to Brie Larson.
You have to know a movie that's a fictionalized version of that real Hollywood world will feature a lot of cameos, and there are a lot of cameos in This is the End. From Michael Cera blowing cocaine in Christopher Mintz-Plasse's face to Kevin Hart admiring Jason Segal's career, the film is chock-full of the greatest comedy stars to work in the 2000s. It's not just comedy stars, either. Rihanna, the Backstreet Boys, and Channing Tatum all show up, and you certainly can't forget Emma Watson's funny appearance.
Emma Watson's This Is The End Cameo Explained
Watson Steals The Guys' Food And Water
Emma Watson appears twice in This is the End. She first appears at James Franco's party, chatting with Craig Robinson, when Jay Baruchel introduces himself. Jay immediately offends, of course, and Watson correctly identifies him as a hipster who doesn't like popular things. While you might assume she dies in the initial apocalypse scene, she returns to the movie halfway through. Right after the guys barricade their home, she comes crashing through wielding an ax, with the ends of her hair singed, but otherwise, she seems to have looked after herself.
Though it seems like they'll all be getting along, a comment by Jay, as well-intentioned as he thought it was, comes off as incredibly creepy, and before they know it, Watson is swinging her ax at the fellas and stealing the rest of their water and food. As Danny McBride says, "Hermione just stole all our shit." It's a hilarious scene.
Watson comes off as wildly more competent and bold than the six cowering actors who can't even go five minutes without getting into a horribly offensive argument. Watson does not take roles in Rogen comedies, so it's particularly funny that she exits the scene as soon as she gets a look at what it's really like.
Seth Rogen Sets The Record Straight On Emma Watson Walking Off The This Is The End Set
Emma Did Not "Storm" Off Set
Emma Watson does some wild stuff in This is the End, but she did have a line when it came to some of Rogen and his crew's ideas. According to GQ, Watson allegedly stormed off the set after refusing to do a scene with Danny McBride and Channing Tatum, with Tatum in a leather-thonged gimp suit. Rogen said there were no hard feelings though,
"I mean, I don't look back on that and think, 'How dare she do that?' You know? I think sometimes when you read something, when it comes to life it doesn’t seem to be what you thought it was. But it was not some terrible ending to our relationship. She came back the next day to say goodbye. She helped promote the film. No hard feelings and I couldn't be happier with how the film turned out in the end… She was probably right. It was probably funnier the way we ended up doing it."
Clearly, Rogan and crew were totally fine with what Watson chose to do and what not to do on This is the End. Rogan went a step further and corrected the language used in the GQ article, which used the word "stormed", implying that she was angry with something that happened on set. Rogan clarified on Twitter (via IndieWire),
"I want to correct a story that has emerged from a recent interview I gave. It misrepresents what actually happened. Emma Watson did not 'storm off the set' and it’s shitty that the perception is that she did. The scene was not what was originally scripted, it was getting improvised, changed drastically and was not what she agreed to. The narrative that she was in some way uncool or unprofessional is complete bullshit."
So not only was Watson well within her rights to reject an idea she wasn't interested in doing, she obviously did so in such a professional and amiable way that Rogan found it necessary to apologize and clarify that she did so. Emma Watson may not have been on the set of This is the End for long, but she clearly made enough of an impression that Rogan wants to make sure fans understand what a great part of the crew she was.
