Quinta Brunson Was Unfazed By Daniel Radcliffe’s “Height Match” Comment

After Harry Potter vet Daniel Radcliffe called Quinta Brunson a “perfect height match” to be his leading lady in a rom-com as he walked the Emmys red carpet, he worried she might not appreciate what he said. Fortunately for him, she was unfazed, because the topic came up again when Brunson appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Feb. 7. Following a chat about the new season of her acclaimed comedy series Abbott Elementary (and all the crying she did at the Emmys), she addressed what Radcliffe said about their heights and potential rom-com future.

Measuring Up

Brunson, who stands at 4 feet, 11 inches tall, was aware of Radcliffe’s comments when Kimmel brought them up on the late-night show. “He said we’re a good height match… which we are,” she said. Though she wanted to refrain from talking too much about Radcliffe’s height, she added, “We are both short people, and I think on screen, we would look the equivalent of like, a 6-[foot]-5-[inch] man and a 5-[foot]-9-[inch] woman … so if you put us next to each other, it looks good.”

The two are “huge friends” and “he’s wonderful,” Brunson said, so she reached out to him after his red carpet interview. Radcliffe felt bad and apologized for bringing up their heights, but she let him know she was unbothered. “I was like, ‘It’s OK,’” she said. “‘It was totally true and right.’”

Height In Hollywood

Both actors have copped to having concerns about their own height and its possible impact on their work in the past. “When I got to LA and I started really thinking about whether or not I could be an actress, I was like, ‘Oh, dang, nobody is 4’11”... We may have encountered a problem we didn’t think about here,’” Brunson told Bustle in April 2022. Of course, her short stature didn’t ultimately prevent her from creating and starring in Abbott Elementary. She’s won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for the show so far.

Radcliffe, who is 5 feet, 5 inches tall, according to his IMDb bio, largely hasn’t had issues with his height impacting his acting career, either. However, he told Playboy in October 2015 that there are certain roles that he couldn’t “take [himself] seriously in” given his height.

“I wouldn’t be able to take myself seriously as the quarterback in a football movie, which is my one legitimate gripe,” he said. “I would love to be in a football movie. The only part I would get is the general manager.”

The Rom-Com Fans Want

Fans are ready for Brunson and Radcliffe to team up on a rom-com, and they’re already delivering ideas on social media. Kimmel read a few to Brunson on his show, and she thought a “romantasy” starring them as “academics doing research at an old jail” before being transported back in time was “pretty good.”

In the meantime, new episodes of Abbott Elementary Season 3 air Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.