Should Hermione Have Ended Up With Harry?

For years, fans argued about Hermione Granger ended up with the right boy.

In 2014, J.K. Rowling stepped into the argument in an interview conducted by Emma Watson.

Here is what Rowling, Watson and Rupert Grint have said about Harry, Ron and Hermione.

What Did J.K. Rowling Say About Hermione And Harry?

The comments came in Wonderland magazine in February 2014.

Watson guest-edited the issue and interviewed Rowling herself.

The Sunday Times printed excerpts first, under a front-page headline: “JK admits Hermione should have wed Harry”.

Rowling’s key line: “I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment”.

She said the ending came from clinging to the plot as she first imagined it, for reasons with little to do with literature. She also admitted that “distance has given me perspective”.

And she went further: “in some ways Hermione and Harry are a better fit”.

Did Rowling Really Say Hermione Should Have Married Harry?

Not in those exact words.

MuggleNet went through the full interview and found no line where Rowling says Hermione “should have ended up” with Harry or that she regrets the ending.

The full text, published days later, was different than the headlines.

Rowling joked that Ron and Hermione might need marriage counselling and added that they would probably be fine if he worked on his self-esteem and she became a little less critical.

She still saw a real problem, though.

In her view, the attraction was believable, but the constant bickering would be hard to survive in an adult relationship.

Watson agreed with Rowling in the interview. She said there are fans “who wonder whether Ron would have really been able to make her happy”.

She also brought up a film scene that had bothered her.

In Deathly Hallows Part 1, Harry and Hermione dance together in the tent, a moment that is not in the book.

Watson told Rowling she had worried the scene strayed from what Rowling intended. Rowling surprised her: she liked it, and said “you do feel the ghost of what could have been in that scene”.

Rowling explained she felt the same tension while writing the tent chapters, and screenwriter Steve Kloves sensed it at the same point without being told.

What Rupert Grint Thinks

Ron’s actor has given 2 very different answers over the years.

In a HuffPost interview with Matthew Lewis and Evanna Lynch, he joked: “I would expect Ron has probably divorced Hermione already”. Lynch answered with a shocked “What?!”

By 2019 he sounded more settled.

He admitted that “on paper, it makes probably more sense that she ends up with Harry”.

He still backs the ending in the books: “I like how it all came together”.

Plenty of fans pushed back on Rowling.

Their argument: the Ron and Hermione tension starts in book 1, and Grint himself called it something that was brewing for a long time.

One columnist picked a third side, arguing that “Hermione is too good, too strong for either of them”.

Will The HBO Series Change Anything?

HBO promises a faithful adaptation, with one season per book.

Nothing announced so far suggests a different ending.

Arabella Stanton plays Hermione, Dominic McLaughlin plays Harry and Alastair Stout plays Ron, starting December 25, 2026.

However, the dance scene settles the debate as much as anything can. The authora nd the actress all felt the same pull at the same moment, and the story still chose Ron.

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