Harry Potter’s Rupert Grint admits his first nights as a father were ‘terrifying’

Rupert Grint admits he found his first night as a father ‘terrifying’ because he was convinced his newborn daughter might die in her sleep. 

The Harry Potter star and his girlfriend Georgia Groome welcomed their daughter, Wednesday, into the world nine months ago. 

And Rupert, 32, says he had sleepless nights when they first brought the child home because he thought she would suffer a cot death.

The actor admitted he’s always ‘struggled’ with sleep, and so was constantly getting up to make sure his daughter was still breathing.

He told Esquire: ‘I don’t want to go too into detail, but the first night was just terrifying. You can’t sleep at all, just constantly checking that she’s breathing. Sleeping, in general, for me, is something I’ve really struggled with. 

‘I think as a kid, people always said, ‘They died in their sleep,’ so I always thought sleep was a really dangerous, dangerous thing.’ 

The actor also joked he had an ‘identity crisis’ when his daughter arrived, as he thought he had to change his wardrobe so he’d look like a dad.

He added: ‘I struggle with that, being a dad. Had a bit of an identity crisis. I don’t know, do I change the way I dress now?’

Meanwhile, Rupert recently said he enjoys being a parent but is ‘still kind of coming to terms with what being a dad is’.

He said: ‘It’s so much fun. I feel like I’ve changed as a person for sure. It kind of happened overnight, lifestyle-wise. I stopped smoking straight away. I’ve started sleeping so much better – I used to be a horrific insomniac, now I’m sleeping.

‘It’s been a very calming process for me. Obviously there are days when she is full on. But there’s something really nice about the routine. It’s got me in a good place, I think.’ 

Rupert Grint has admitted that he felt he needed to stand up for transgender people after J.K. Rowling became embroiled in a bitter row last year.

The actor, who is best known for playing Ron Weasley in the film series based on Rowling’s Harry Potter books, released a statement following intense backlash from the transgender community against the acclaimed author in June.