Emma Watson Fuels Romance Rumors with Oxford Classmate Kieran Brown

Published: 3:59 PM PDT, July 9, 2024

Emma Watson appears to have a new romantic connection in her life!

On July 1, the 34-year-old actress was seen sharing a kiss with Oxford University peer, Kieran Brown, as they strolled around the city close to the campus. Watson is currently pursuing her master’s degree, while Brown is working towards a PhD in 19th-century literature and economics.

In the pictures, the Harry Potter star can be seen locking lips with Brown, both casually dressed in blue button-up tops. The couple was also spotted enjoying a date at a local bakery on Friday, according to a source who spoke to photographers.

“Emma is studying creative writing, and his thesis centers on literary theory — so they have plenty to discuss,” a source familiar with the couple revealed. “She seems very smitten with Kieran.”

The actress, known for keeping her personal life private, has previously been linked to other Oxford University students, including Will Adamowicz and Matt Janney. She met both during her participation in the Visiting Student Program from 2011 to 2012.

Much like her academically inclined Harry Potter character, Hermione Granger, Watson has always made education a priority. She attended the Ivy League Brown University and graduated in 2014 with a degree in English literature.

It took Watson a little over five years to complete her degree at Brown, particularly because she took a brief break to finish work on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, which hit theaters in July 2011.

“As you know, I love Brown and I love studying more than almost anything, but recently I’ve had to balance so much that being a student and fulfilling my other commitments became nearly impossible,” she wrote to fans at the time.

In the past few years, as Watson stepped away from acting to focus on her studies once more, she has openly shared that acting did not bring her happiness. Her last acting role was in Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation of Little Women.

In a 2023 interview with the Financial Times, the live-action Beauty and the Beast star explained why she chose to take a break from acting. She shared that the career path she started at nine years old wasn’t aligning with her life goals.

“I think I felt a bit caged,” Watson said. “What I found really hard was having to go out and promote something over which I had very little creative control. It was tough to be the face and spokesperson for projects where I didn’t have much involvement in the process.”