NEED TO KNOW
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Emma Watson has been banned from driving for six months, following a hearing on Wednesday, July 16, at which she was ordered to pay £1,044 ($1,396)
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The Harry Potter alum already had nine points on her license when she was caught driving 38 mph in a 30 mph zone in July 2024
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A rep for Watson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment
Emma Watson has been temporarily banned from driving as a result of a 2024 speeding incident.
PEOPLE confirms that the Harry Potter alum was ordered not to drive for six months on Wednesday, July 16 — nearly a year after a camera caught her going 38 mph in a 30 mph zone in Oxford, England, on July 31, 2024.
As detailed by the BBC, Watson, 35, already had nine points on her driver’s license before the incident, and was ordered to pay a fine of £1,044 ($1,396) at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court Wednesday. The actress did not attend the related hearing, which lasted five minutes, per the BBC.
A rep for Watson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Wednesday.
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Emma Watson in New York City on Sept. 15, 2022
Watson is most widely known for her starring role as Hermione Granger in all eight Harry Potter films, beginning in 2001 and ending in 2011.
The actress has taken a step back from the spotlight in recent years, even enrolling in a master’s program in creative writing at Oxford University in September 2024.
In a December 2023 interview with British Vogue, Watson said she was “so glad that I [took a break from acting] because I have this feeling of having my own voice and creative space and sovereignty in some way that I don’t think I did before — more autonomy.”
“I’m so glad that I allowed things to be messy for a minute and to really allow myself to not know [what’s next], because the knowing that I’ve come to, I wouldn’t trade that for anything,” she added.
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Emma Watson in Milan on Feb. 22, 2024
Watson’s most recent rare public appearances came on Feb. 14, when she attended the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game in Oakland, California, and later at the Cannes Film Festival in May.
A source told PEOPLE that the Little Women actress was “very low-key” during the night out at the basketball game in February, and seemed “excited to be there.”
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Pursuits in recent years for Watson have included continuing her education at Oxford after earning a degree in English Literature from Brown University in 2014.
She also made her directorial debut with the Prada Paradoxe campaign in 2022, and launched her own gin brand with her brother Alex in May 2023.
Read the original article on People
