Daniel Radcliffe Not A Fan Of The Early ‘Harry Potter’ Films

“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s (Philosopher’s) Stone” and “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” might have lifelong fans in readers of the best-selling J.K. Rowling “Harry Potter” series, but the films' star Daniel Radcliffe definitely isn’t one of them.

In an interview with Melvyn Bragg of Sky Arts 1 “The South Bank Show” (airing Thursday), Radcliffe, 24, famous for his eight-film performance playing the feature’s lead boy wizard, confessed that the franchise’s early installments are not his favorites.

“There wasn’t a lot of nuance to my performance when we were young. I find those early films very hard to watch personally,” Radcliffe admitted (via Radio Times), adding that his lack of acting experience (he had starred in only one film, “David Copperfield” in 1999, prior to scoring the life-changing gig) was to blame. “There were certain things I just didn’t know. There were certain things like how to break down a script, or even certain questions like what does your character want out of a certain scene,” he added.

According to Radcliffe, the studio failed to provide professional acting training for him and his two main co-stars, Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) and Emma Watson (Hermione Granger). “If we had a singing scene, we had a singing teacher come in. If we had a dance scene, a dance coach would come in. We never had an acting coach in all the time we were there, and there were times we could have done with one. I know I could have,” Radcliffe said.

So which “Harry Potter” films does Radcliffe enjoy? The actor, who is currently acting in a Broadway play and working on the Douglas McGrath drama “Brooklyn Bridge,” says he considers the series' third film, “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” watchable, thanks to co-star Gary Oldman (Sirius Black).

“I think my best work in the 'Potter' films comes when I’m ever in a scene with Gary,” Radcliffe said. “It was that right mixture of being so sort of starstruck by somebody. Just being around him made me want to absolutely push myself every time, because that’s what you see in his work and that’s what you see when he’s on set.”

Despite his distaste for the early “Harry Potter” films, Radcliffe insists he is grateful for his starring roles in the blockbusters. “I never wanted to be one of those people that turned around and had to be disparaging about what they had done in the past in order to make a career for themselves in the future,” Radcliffe explained.

The last “Harry Potter” film, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2,” was in theaters in 2011. Warner Bros. is currently working on an adaptation of Rowling’s 2001 short novel, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Radcliffe is currently starring in the Broadway comedy "The Cripple of Inhismaan." The production, directed by Michael Grandage, runs through July 20.