‘Harry Potter’ countdown: Tom Felton’s tattoo prank leads our NYC premiere diary

A MONTH OF MAGIC: Hero Complex is counting down to the Nov. 19 release of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 1” — the penultimate film in the history-making “Potter” franchise — with exclusive interviews, photos, videos and reports from the set. Today, Michael Giltz gives us a black-carpet diary from his coverage of the New York premiere Monday at the newly revamped Lincoln Center.

Tom Felton at the New York "Deathly Hallows" premiere. (Andrew Gombert / European Pressphoto Agency)

DRACO’S EVIL PLAN: He’s nowhere as sinister as Draco Malfoy, but Tom Felton does have a mischievous side. That’s why he planted a rumor far and wide that he and other “Potter” cast members were getting the same tattoo, a la the crew of “The Lord of the Rings.” The prank worked, with Rupert Grint, Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe suddenly bombarded with questions about what tattoo they would be getting and where. “I suggested a lightning bolt on the left buttock,” Felton said. “I think it would be rather fetching. Daniel and Emma beg to differ.” Then he mimed dropping his pants before smiling and moving on down the red carpet. Whatever happens to his career, Felton is clearly confident and ready to have fun. He played right along when I suggested Daniel Radcliffe was imitating him: Felton has a ghost story project, “The Apparition,” and Radcliffe has announced he’ll star in the new Hammer film “The Woman in Black,” based on the smash hit play that’s also a ghost story. “It’s sad, really,” Felton said with a wink.

Rupert Grint at the New York "Deathly Hallows" premiere. (Andrew Gombert / EPA)

GRINT’S GRIMACE: If anyone seems to feel they’re just lucky to be along for the ride, it’s Grint, who is – like everyone else in the cast and crew – unfailingly polite but still seems a little out of his element in the media storm. Asked about his other recent film, ”Wild Target,” (with fellow “Potter” alum Bill Nighy), in which he plays an inept aspiring hit man, Grint practically moaned when asked if he was better at gunplay or Quidditch. “I’m quite similarly bad at both,” he says. “I’ll take Quidditch.” Grint also said he’d try not to tear up again as the finality of the franchise farewell sinks in. “I’ve vowed to stay strong this time,” he says. “That day was just really weird. It just felt really final. I remember cleaning out my dressing room and finding toys I brought for my first film rehearsal. To think how long I’ve been there, this is crazy. It’s going to take a while for me to kind of get over it and move on.”

RAIDER OF THE LOST ART: Producer David Barron, who was a key player on six of the eight “Harry Potter” films, has a resume that began when he was a production manager on such classic fare as “The Princess Bride” and Jim Henson’s TV series “The Storyteller.” But Barron says helping to steer one of the most successful franchises in movie history has not been his biggest challenge. That honor goes to the George Lucas TV series “The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.” “Yeah,” says Barron when asked if it was the perfect training ground for this project. “Obviously, being a TV series, even though it’s very well-funded for a TV series, it was still very ambitious and we filmed all over the world on very tight schedules with very ambitious material. It was tricky. It was very difficult.”

DAVID AND DAVID AND DAVID : With Barron, producer David Heyman and (on the last four films) director David Yates, there are certainly a lot of Davids on hand. “It’s so confusing; I can’t tell you,” said David Yates, who had a great decade thanks to these films and the acclaimed TV miniseries “State of Play,” with a laugh. “Fortunately, the other two stay off the set most of the time,” Yates said, playfully. “They come down when necessary, but most of the time they’re up in the office playing cards.”

Emma Watson poses at the New York "Deathly Hallows" premiere. (Evan Agostini / Associated Press)

MY DEAR WATSON: Watson  jumped at the chance to get a Mia Farrow-esque pixie haircut when shooting was over and is attending Brown University. She has shown a strong interest in fashion and a million other areas. “I’d like to be a writer, I’d like to be an artist, I’d like to be a singer,” says Watson, when asked what’s up next for her. She’s keeping busy with some assigned reading for school: “I’m reading Robert Self,” she says, referring to an associate professor of history at Brown, “his writing on culture and politics in the U.S. since 1945. It’s interesting; it’s good.”

Daniel Radcliffe at the New York "Deathly Hallows" premiere. (Shannon Stapleton / Reuters)

WILD ABOUT HARRY: Radcliffe has worked hard on his acting, boldly tackling stage dramas like “Equus” and next spring’s Broadway revival of “How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying.“  He was the last one from the film to make his way down the black carpet but plenty of people asked about the tattoo. “I keep hearing about it too,” says Radcliffe. “None of us have spoken about it. If a couple of other people get it first, I’ll have it.”  As a publicist tugs on his shoulder, we toss out a few more quick queries, finding out (as he’s probably repeated over and over) that Radcliffe saved a pair of glasses from the first movie and a pair from the last one.  And how does he feel as the series reaches its end? “It’s been an amazing 10 years,” Radcliffe says. “I am … over-brimming with gratitude.”

– Michael Giltz

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