Katie Leung Explains Why She 'Would Not Want to Go Back' and Relive Her Time Filming “Harry Potter”

Meredith WilshereSat, March 7, 2026 at 2:00 PM UTC

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Katie LeungCredit: Dave Benett/Getty -

There's one main reason why Katie Leung wouldn't want relive her Harry Potter days

The actress, 38, told Entertainment Tonight that she's in a much different place now than she was while filming the movies two decades ago

"I was so young at the time, and I was so easily influenced by what people would say about me because I didn’t know who I was," she explained

Katie Leung was still figuring out who she was while filming Harry Potter, and has no desire to relive those days.

The 38-year-old actress played Cho Chang, a Hogwarts student, in five Harry Potter movies. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Leung explained that she has a much better grasp on life in the spotlight now compared to when she was cast in the franchise at 16.

“I was so young at the time, and I was so easily influenced by what people would say about me because I didn’t know who I was," she said.

“I would not want to go back to that time. Not because I had a bad time or anything, but it’s just really nice when you know who you are, and I’m still figuring that out, but I’m a bit closer," she added.

Katie Leung in 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'Credit: Everett

Leung sang a similar tune when chatting with PEOPLE last month about HBO's new Harry Potter series. When asked what advice she'd give to the actress playing Cho in the upcoming series adaptation, she said, "Oh goodness. I think it is hard to say. Because when you're that age, you're kind of trying to figure things out and who you are."

"As a teenager, I certainly didn't know who I was," she added, noting that "maybe it's different now [because] the younger generation, they're more clued-up with the world of social media and stuff like that."

Still, her general advice for anyone in the acting world is "just to be themselves, because that's what makes them unique."

"And to not let the kind of noise of other people get to you, because what you have already is a gift, and you should really just try and hold onto that," she said.

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Katie Leung in BridgertonCredit: Liam Daniel/Netflix

Aside from the pressures of navigating fame at an early age, in 2016, Leung told PEOPLE that she had a few other regrets about her time filming the fantasy franchise.

“I wish I never cut my hair the way I did. I had this horrific haircut!” she said of her hair in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. She then shared that one of the reasons she can’t revisit that work is that she would make different choices now as an actress.

“You grow as an actor and you change your choices. That’s partly why I can’t watch them. I’m just really judgmental of myself," she admitted.

Since her time on Harry Potter, Leung has starred in Arcane, Nightsleeper, Annika and more. Most recently, she joined the cast of Bridgerton as Lady Araminta, the evil stepmother in the story that unfolds between housemaid Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha) and Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson).

In January 2026, she told PEOPLE she was grateful not to have been the only newcomer on season 4 of the hit Netflix series.

"I think it really helped that I wasn't the only one joining; there was a team of us, and we met up for HotPot before it all started, so that helped as well," Leung said.

“Whenever you join a new project, it does always feel like the first day of school on the first day on set," she admitted. "I don't know why, but on this occasion, on this project, I just got over that really quickly. So that was nice."

Bridgerton is now streaming on Netflix.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”