Harry Potter alum Emma Watson reflected on her decision to take an acting break, reflecting on the sense of freedom she felt leaving the spotlight.

Emma Watson was simply no longer enchanted by acting.

The Harry Potter alum has largely stepped away from onscreen roles since appearing in 2019’s Little Women—and she has no regrets.

“I’m just so glad that I did,” Emma told British Vogue in an interview posted Dec. 14, “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.”

She continued, “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.”

After all, the 33-year-old spent much of her life in the spotlight as she made her debut as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films when she was just 11 years old. And when the blockbuster series ended in 2011, she went on to star in movies such as The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Bling Ring and Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast remake.

While on the outside, Emma was living most actors’ dreams. But on the inside, she was struggling.

“I get a front row seat [with] some of the most successful, beautiful, incredible people in the world,” Emma expressed. “And when you have that seat it becomes very, very clear that there is just absolutely no level of success that will make you in any way happy or content if you do not like who you are or enjoy what you’re doing when no one’s watching.”

Arnold Jerocki/GC Images

Meanwhile, amid her acting hiatus, Emma has continued to keep her personal life private. In fact, she shared she was “very happy” being single in an interview with British Vogue last year, adding, “I call it being self-partnered.”

Now, reflecting on those remarks, she clarified that those remarks weren’t “necessarily about me celebrating being single.”

“Getting to the point when I was 30,” Emma explained, “I was realizing, ‘Oh, maybe I’ve figured out some things about how to care for myself better—maybe quite well, actually.’ And taking pride in that.”

But these days, the Renais Gin co-founder is not alone: Emma finds support and companionship in her beloved rescue dog Sofia.

“I just look at her and I’m like, ‘Well, I’m happy and you’re happy,’” she noted. “The thing that is so amazing about animals is they’re just so good at being. Food, humans, sleep—they’re very good at the basics. I feel like whenever I get really overwhelmed, I’m like, ‘Emma, just do the basics.’ ”

Look back at Emma through the years below:

DMIPhoto/FilmMagic

2001

John Li/Getty Images

2002

SGranitz/WireImage
2002

Dave Hogan/Getty Images
2002

Lawrence Lucier/Getty Images
2002

Steve Finn/Getty Images
2003

Dave Hogan/Getty Images
2004

Dave Benett/Getty Images
2004

Peter Kramer/Getty Images
2005

Harold Cunningham/WireImage
2007

Jon Furniss/WireImage
2007

Eamonn McCormack/WireImage
2008

Serge BENHAMOU/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
2008

Michel Dufour/WireImage
2008

Jon Furniss/WireImage
2009

Rabbani and Solimene Photography/WireImage
2010

Jon Furniss/WireImage
2010

Dave M. Benett/Getty Images
2011

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
2011

Mike Marsland/Getty Images
2011

Donato Sardella/WireImage
2012

Jerod Harris/Getty Images For Vitaminwater
2012

Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images
2013

Jason Kempin/Getty Images
2013

Jeff Vespa/WireImage
2014

Dave J Hogan/Getty Images
2014

Fotonoticias/WireImage
2015

Dave Benett/Getty Images for Harper’s Bazaar
2016

Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
2016

Franziska Krug/Getty Images
2016