emma watson

Shutterstock (Licensed)

People are obsessed with Emma Watson’s term for ‘single’

She just coined the phrase 'self-partnered'.

Photo of Brenden Gallagher 

Brenden Gallagher

Streaming

Posted on Nov 5, 2019   Updated on May 19, 2021, 11:43 pm CDT

For Emma Watson, being single is a state of mind.

The Harry Potter and Little Women actress revealed that she prefers to call herself “self-partnered” instead of “single” in an interview with British Vogue.

“I never believed the whole ‘I’m happy single’ spiel,” she said. “I was like, ‘This is totally spiel.’ It took me a long time, but I’m very happy [being single]. I call it being self-partnered.”

This clarification was in the context of a discussion of the pressures and anxieties around turning 30, a birthday Watson will meet head-on in April.

She also told British Vogue: “If you have not built a home, if you do not have a husband, if you do not have a baby, and you are turning 30, and you’re not in some incredibly secure, stable place in your career, or you’re still figuring things out… There’s just this incredible amount of anxiety.”

The term resonated with fans online.

https://twitter.com/grangerslight/status/1191456269888098304

These comments also mark another stab at activism for an actress who has become just as known for her causes as for her performances in recent years. In 2014, she was the face of gender equality campaign “HeForShe” and gave an impassioned speech on the subject before the UN.
In 2016, Watson made headlines when she left books on the New York subway and the London Tube.

Watson is currently embarking on a press tour for her role as Margaret “Meg” March in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women.
Though excerpts of the interview have been released online, the full interview with Watson will not be available until the December issue of the magazine hits newsstands on Nov. 8.
READ MORE:
Share this article
*First Published: Nov 5, 2019, 12:37 pm CST

Brenden Gallagher

Brenden Gallagher is a politics reporter and cultural commentator. His work has been published by Motherboard, Complex, and VH1. He’s the co-founder of Beer Money Films, an indie production company. Based in Los Angeles, he works in television drama as a writers assistant.

Brenden Gallagher