Spotted! After HBO Max included a throwback childhood photo of Emma Roberts instead of one of Emma Watson during the Harry Potter reunion special, the England native has responded about the case of mistaken identity.
“I was NOT this cute, @emmaroberts 😂,” the Bling Ring actress, 31, captioned an Instagram snap of the included photo on Wednesday, January 5. She added an “Emma Sisters Forever” hashtag to her post.
The actresses previously made headlines after eagle-eyed Harry Potter fans noticed an old photo of the Screen Queens alum, 30, was used as Watson discussed her childhood during HBO Max’s Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts special.
“I think I probably would’ve been about 8 years old. I think that’s probably when the first one came out. It became, like, our family thing,” the Little Women actress said while discussing her memories of the book series during the program— which debuted on the streaming platform on Saturday, January 1 — as the photo of Roberts was shown. “My dad used to do all the voices, and my brother and I just became obsessed. We would just beg him to keep going.”
Fans were quick to note that Roberts, for her part, had first shared the childhood photo — wearing a pair of Minnie Mouse ears — via her Instagram in February 2012. “Minnie Mouse ears,” the Nickelodeon alum captioned her post at the time.
Following the photo mishap, the production team issued a statement and clarified they planned to reedit the reunion.
“Well spotted Harry Potter fans!” Warner Bros. explained via a statement to Entertainment Weekly on Sunday, January 2. “You brought an editing mistake of a mislabeled photograph to our attention. New version up shortly.”
The Little Italy star, for her part, has yet to address the photo confusion, which wasn’t the only mistake that fans spotted during the anticipated TV special.
“↔️ I guess after all those pranks over the years somebody decided to get their revenge 🤨🤣🤷🤪,” Oliver Phelps — who played one half of the Weasley twins alongside his brother, James Phelps — wrote via Instagram on Sunday after fans noticed lower thirds with each twin’s name were switched during a joint interview. “It was fantastic to be part of the HP reunion. Hope you all enjoyed it. #ReturnToHogwarts.”
Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom, reacted to Oliver’s post via Instagram comment, replying, “This is legit hilarious. Dude. Wtf? Haha.”
Warner Bros. has since fixed the name tags.
In Return to Hogwarts, Watson reunited with her former magical costars, including Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley), Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange) and Gary Oldman (Sirius Black).
Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts is now streaming on HBO Max.
