Emma Watson Dedicated Britannia Award to Her Late Hamster—Find Out Why

Get the ''sweet, but slightly morbid'' story about the animal's passing

By Marc Malkin Oct 31, 2014 9:05 PMTags
Emma WatsonDavid Buchan/BAFTA LA/Getty Images for BAFTA LA

Emma Watson hasn't forgotten about her late hamster Millie.

At last night's Jaguar Britannia Awards at the Beverly Hilton, where she was honored by BAFTA-LA with the The Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year presented by Burberry, the actress dedicated her award to Millie.

Her furry friend's passing, she said, is a "sweet, but slightly morbid example" of how the British film community has been a like a "surrogate family" to her.

"On the first Harry Potter film, my on-set hamster Millie had a heart attack and didn't quite make it," Watson said. "The set decorators built a small mahogany hamster-sized coffin and it had a velvet lining [and] a silver plaque on front which had Millie's named engraved in it.

Frazer Harrison/BAFTA LA/Getty Images for BAFTA LA

"What I'm trying to say is you're all very special to me and your vote of confidence means a lot," she continued. "Rest in peace, Millie—this one's for you."

Watson was presented with her award by Belle star Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Ben Barnes, who played Caspian X in The Chronicles of Narnia films.

Last night's other honorees included Robert Downey Jr. (Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film), Julia Louis Dreyfus (The Charlie Chaplin Britannia Award for Excellence in Comedy), Mark Ruffalo (Britannia Humanitarian Award, Dame Judi Dench (Albert R. Broccoli Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Entertainment) and Mike Leigh (John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing).

Celeb guests and presenters included Josh Gad, Dustin Hoffman, Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Jon Favreau, Robert Duvall, Jamie Foxx, Hailee Steinfeld and Nigel Lythgoe.

The Jaguar Britannia Awards are set to air on BBC America on Nov. 2 at 9 p.m.