Emma Watson and Tom Felton: A Complete Timeline of the ‘Harry Potter’ Co-Stars’ Dating Rumors

Fans have a lot of hopes, opinions and feelings for the friendship between former Harry Potter co-stars Emma Watson and Tom Felton. The actors played Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy respectively, but they were not as combative off-screen as they were on. With rumors of a secret romance between them at an all-time high, let’s take a look at all the clues we have gotten over the years.

For many fans, dreams of a Hermione-Malfoy romance go all the way back to the books. In fan communities, the “ship” is known as “Dramione,” and it is a surprisingly popular one. While it never played out on the page, many fans still hold out hope for Dramione in the form of the actors that played its parts — Watson and Felton.

Of course, the Harry Potter franchise made both of these actors international sensations. Watson went on to star in Disney’s live-action reboot of Beauty and the Beast, among other things, and Felton has had roles in blockbusters like Rise of the Planet of the Apes as well as shows like The Flash.

Meanwhile, both celebrities have also had their love lives publicized, as is common for people of their status. Felton has not had any notable celebrity entanglements yet, though his rumored “sparks” with Watson are stubborn. Watson has dated rugby player Tom Ducker, financier Jay Barrymore and a few others, but none has been a particularly public affair.

Fans hope that this discretion means it is possible Watson is keeping a relationship with Felton a secret too, although she said this month that it is not true. Still, here is a look at all the evidence fans are grasping onto.

First Crush

After lying dormant for years, the Dramione ship awoke in 2011, when Watson admitted she had had a crush on Felton when they were much younger. In an interview with Seventeen, she said that Felton knew about her feelings.

“For the first two movies, I had a huge crush on Tom Felton. He was my first crush,” she revealed at the time. “He totally knows. We talked about it – we still laugh about it. We are really good friends now, and that’s cool.”

Surprise

Despite what Watson said, Felton was surprised when he learned about this supposed crush. It came up much later, in the spring of 2016, when Seventeen asked him about the on-set romance.

“No, [I didn’t know]” he said. “Sorry I’m being a bit aloof with my answers.”

While that may not have been the impassioned response fans wanted to hear, Felton made up for it as he and Watson soon began spending a lot of time together.

‘Reuniting all the Time’

Felton and Watson made headlines last fall when they were seen together in California hanging out on the beach. Felton took Watson skateboarding on the boardwalk, and later told Us Weekly that this hang-out was not so unusual for them.

“We do see each other quite a lot actually. We just don’t always post pictures about it,” he said. “Everyone loves the reunion of it. We’re reuniting all the time we just don’t always post it on Instagram.”

“She was in my neighborhood and I hadn’t seen her for a few months. And I decided to take her for a skateboarding lesson, which she was very good at,” he continued. “She’s quite hard on herself. But she’s actually very good at it. So yeah, that was fun. I always enjoy spending time with her.”

‘Friends Capture You Best’

The firnedly gatherings continue, as fans saw on Watson’s Instagram next. In February, she posted a photo of herself in an SUV with the roof down, apparently enjoying a sunny, adventurous day. She gave photo credit to Felton for the snapshot, but dismayed fans by referring to him as a “friend.”

Guitar Lessons

Their next photo came in August, and fans nearly lost their minds. It showed Felton apparently teaching Watson to play guitar in a beautiful, sunlit house in South Africa. The best part? Both stars were in their pajamas, so it was clear that this was not a casual drop-by appointment.

“My dramione fanfic that I wrote when I was 12 entered the chat,” one fan commented.

‘Women do it Better’

That same day, Felton posted a photo of himself on the beach wearing a T-shirt that said “women do it better.” He credited Watson for taking the picture, and her knees were visible in the foreground. Many fans thought this was a good sign, as Watson is an avowed feminist, and it would make sense that Felton would have to share her enthusiasm for them to be compatible.

‘Self-Partnered’

In spite of all these hopeful signs, this fan favorite romance is entirely fictitious. This month, Watson gave an interview with British Vogue, where she confirmed that she is single.

“I was like, ‘This is totally spiel.’ It took me a long time, but I’m very happy [being single]. I call it being self-partnered,” she quipped.

Naturally, reporters asked Felton about the quote, and he told The Daily Mail that he liked the new term.

“It’s the first I’ve heard of it, but it’s great. I’m in the same category, to be honest with you, quite happily self-partnered,” he said.

‘Sparks’

Whatever Watson and Felton themselves say, it seems fans will never stop holding onto hope. Neither will their friends, from the sound of it, as fellow Harry Potter star Rupert Grint said the two had “sparks” in a new interview with Entertainment Tonight.

“There was always something,” Grint said of Watson and Felton. “There was a little bit of a spark. But we were kids. It was like any kind of playground romance.”

Check back for updates on the famous friendship between Felton and Watson on PopCulture.com.