Europe is known to have a more relaxed view on certain topics, and that includes alcohol consumption. For Emma Watson, this was also the case.
Emma’s father Chris bought a vineyard in 1991. Since Emma was born into a family passionate about food, culture, and wine, she shared with the Financial Times that she grew up around alcohol, but it wasn’t a “forbidden fruit.”
She said, "I was quite surprised when other children were very excited about the idea of getting their hands on alcohol."
She continued, "Dad had been giving me water with wine at lunch since I was a child. I didn’t think alcohol was for getting wasted." It came as a surprise when she became a teenager and noticed her peers had a different view.
Recently, Emma's brother Alex followed in his father's footsteps. After years of working as an executive in the industry, he entered the spirits game to open up his own gin brand, Renais, which translates to "rebirth" and is pronounced "Renée."
Emma serves as a "creative partner" for the brand and helps with "imagery, the design, [and] the art direction."
“People always told me I should direct and produce, even when I was on Potter,” she shared. "I was worried it was just technical, not creative, and I couldn’t bring what I think is probably my skill set."
"It was only Alex coming to me with this, and friends asking for favors — ‘I need to do a photo shoot’ or ‘I’m making a video’ — that made me realize I actually know quite a lot about that." She continued, "Being a director seemed unattainable. I don’t think I had any confidence in that. I know it seems weird. I mean, I grew up on a film set.”
Though Emma shared she will be stepping away from film sets for the time being, she says never say never. “I’m happy to sit and wait for the next right thing. I love what I do. It’s finding a way to do it where I don’t have to fracture myself into different faces and people."
