Saoirse Ronan says losing Luna Lovegood role in ‘Harry Potter’ has “stayed with me over the years”

nme.com:

Harry Potter films has “stayed with me over the years”.The Lady Bird star had auditioned for the role ahead of the release of Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix (2007), but was unsuccessful, with Evanna Lynch going on to play the role in the final four instalments in the series.Ronan revealed her disappointment during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

on October 3.“There’s things that you’ll pass on and then they come out, and you think, ‘Oh God, that was a misstep on my part,’” she said. “But I think the one that stayed with me over the years — I didn’t say no to it, I just didn’t get the part.

I lost, again. It’s a running theme for me.“I had gone up for Luna Lovegood in Harry Potter years ago, because it was like the Irish character, so they got everyone Irish in — like half of Ireland to come and audition — and I knew I wasn’t going to get it because I was too young, but I got to read out a scene that was gonna be in Harry Potter and it was the coolest thing ever.”Ronan, who has been nominated for an Oscar four times (for Atonement, Brooklyn, Lady Bird and Little Women) is currently starring in the critically acclaimed addiction drama The Outrun, for which she is receiving yet more Oscar buzz.Directed by Nora Fingscheidt and adapted from Amy Liptrot’s 2016 memoir of the same name, The Outrun tells the story of a young woman named Rona who, after finishing rehab for alcoholism, returns home to the Orkney Islands in Scotland in an attempt to stay sober.