Three Things That Scare Daniel Radcliffe

The Woman in Black star reveals the stuff that makes him jump

The Woman in Black star reveals the stuff that makes him jump

Photo Courtesy of CBS Films | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012


If you wish The Others was even more old-timey and starred a fantasy movie veteran instead of Nicole Kidman, we’ve got good news for you (you super niche weirdo). Daniel Radcliffe’s first post-Potter movie, Woman in Black, arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on May 22 and promises lots of Gothic ghost action. In honor of the release, we asked Radcliffe what freaks him out. And no, it isn’t Draco Malfoy’s hair.

The Woman Behind the Woman in Black


I was very lucky in this film because on Potter I would generally have been working with digital effects instead of having somebody there to act with. I would generally have a ball on a stick or something. Not an actor. Whereas on this film, Liz White, who played the woman in black, was there on set in costume and make-up most days, so it was great. It certainly makes it a lot easier when you’re working with an actor who’s actually there to scare you and terrify you and play a scene with.

Jason and the Argonauts


The first movie I remember being terrified by was Jason and the Argonauts, which is one of my favorite films ever anyway. But there is one sequence in it where these skeletons come to life and come out of the ground and start to battle with Jason and the Argonauts and it’s terrifying. And it still is. It’s the old Harryhausen stop motion effects and it’s brilliantly done, brilliantly animated.

His Body Double


Me and a guy called Ryan, who was my double on Potter for the fourth movie onwards and came onto Woman in Black as well, he and I got into a little bit of a competition where we tried to scare each other by jumping out at each other from various corners of the set. The competition reached a head one day when Ryan jumped out at my from the passenger seat footwell of my car. He had hidden himself in there and as I was trying to go home, I was at the door and he leapt out at me. Other than two five-foot-five men trying to scare the beejesus out of each other, there was not too much terrifying stuff that happened on set.

Photo Courtesy of CBS Films | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012

Bonus Time With Our Main Man Dan

On Going From Boy Wizard to Onscreen Dad


It wasn’t something that I thought about a huge amount because as far as I was concerned I was playing a character, so that character is a father. It’s totally conceivable to me that he’s 24, 25 years old and has a 4-year-old son. It’s conceivable now, but in those days even more likely. So no, that wasn’t a huge concern. I think the main thing I focused on was just the relationship with my son and that it felt real and natural, because I always felt that would be what sold it, rather than trying to do older acting or a voice or a walk or something like that. If the relationship between my son and myself feels real, then that should help mature me in people’s minds. And that was helped by the fact that I have my own real-life godson playing my son in the film, so that relationship is very natural and very real and that hopefully came across in the movie.

Photo Courtesy of CBS Films | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012

On His Next Role As Allen Ginsberg


I’m playing him the youngest that anybody’s ever played him before, and I think this is about a period in his life that people aren’t particularly familiar with. For me, it was about capturing the essence of the man I saw and read about. I think he was somebody who was full of life and curiosity and enthusiasm and a huge amount of pain and sadness. Really that was what I tried to bring in and also a longing to be something more than what he is. That’s what I think my Ginsberg will be.

On Previous Ginsbergs James Franco and David Cross


It’s really interesting — we should have found a part for James Franco in the film because David Cross is in the film playing my father. So he’s now played two members of the Ginsberg family. If only we could’ve got James Franco in to play my brother Eugene in a quick cameo.


Woman in Black is available on Blu-ray and DVD on May 22!

Photo Courtesy of CBS Films | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2012

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