Rupert Grint Leaving Behind ‘Harry Potter’ Days To Play Drug Addict In New Movie

Rupert Grint will forever be Ron Weasley to many fans of the Harry Potter movie series, but the British actor says he’s ready to put the famous role behind him and try something new.

Grint is making quite a change, going from the boyhood friend of Harry Potter to a drug-addicted traveler in the new movie The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman. The movie, which stars Shia LaBeouf alongside Rupert Grint, is about the romance between an American traveler and a troubled Romanian musician (Evan Rachel Wood).

The movie is the directorial debut of Fredrik Bond, and while it’s gotten buzz since premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, it’s also getting press for more controversial reasons. Rupert Grint‘s co-star, Shia LaBeouf, made headlines after admitted to taking acid in preparation for the film.

LaBeouf said that he actually filmed himself during one acid trip then sent the footage to Evan Rachel Wood.

“I remember sending Evan tapes,” Shia told MTV. “I remember trying to conjure this (drug-addicted character) and sending tapes and Evan being like, ‘Yeah, that’s good, but that’s not, but this is, but that ain’t (sic).’ Not like she’s the expert on set. I’m just saying you reach out to friends, and you sort of gauge where you’re at. So I was sending tapes around.”

Even with all the other attention, Grint said he’s looking forward to the role and the chance to break out of his Harry Potter mold.

“After playing the same character for 11 years, it’s nice to do something completely different.” Rupert Grint told The Associated Press. “The character was someone who’s completely the opposite of Ron.”