Surprising car Daniel Radcliffe bought with $27,000,000 Harry Potter paycheck
There are thankfully a growing number of actors who've been able to escape the child star curse, with the likes of Drew Barrymore and Winona Ryder being joined by a career resurgence from Macaulay Culkin. Others like Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace’s Jake Lloyd haven’t been as lucky, while Game of Thrones’ Jack Gleeson (known for playing Joffrey) stepped back because he found there was too much pressure.
Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter movies starred major stars like Ralph Fiennes, Dame Maggie Smith, and Gary Oldman, although it also made household names of its younger actors. While Robert Pattinson was arguably the breakout thanks to roles in the Twilight movies and now playing Batman, the core trio of Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson have all celebrated lucrative careers.
Having played the titular Harry Potter from 2001 to 2011, Radcliffe went on to star in the West End and Broadway productions of Equus, appeared in The Woman and Black, Now You See Me 2, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, and more.
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While Parade lists Radcliffe’s net worth as $110 million in 2026, a substantial $27 million of that was said to have been unlocked on his 18th birthday. But what did ‘The Boy Who Lived’ do with all that money at a young age?
According to Supercar Blondie, some of it went on an unexpected car. Instead of following in the footsteps of most footballers who make bank at a young age, Radcliffe didn’t race to his local Lamborghini dealership and splash out on a supercar.
The outlet says Radcliffe bought a Fiat Punto Grande, with friends saying he did his research into what car to buy.
It’s noted that Grande Punto was among the UK’s top five most environmentally friendly cars at the time, while Radcliffe was already trying to flex his green credentials by being conscious of his carbon footprint.
Supposedly wanting to nip around the streets of London without being recognized as ‘Harry Potter’, it’s said that Radcliffe even turned down the options for sport upgrades like real spoilers and chrome exhausts. A Fiat Grande Punto was around $20,000 at the time and can now be snapped up for just $4,000.
Speaking to WENN (via The Sun), Radcliffe said: “I’m not gonna be one of these people who when I do pass my test gets, like, a crazy fast elaborate car.
“A good piece of advice I was given was, ‘When you’re buying a car, buy a car you’ll feel comfortable sitting in traffic in. ‘If you’re in a Ferrari in traffic, you’re not gonna look cool!’”
Radcliffe’s tastes have evolves has he’s gotten a bit older, as he’s been linked to owning everything from a Land Rover Range Rover SV Autobiography (up to $210,000) to a Lamborghini Huracán (around $250,000).
One car you might expect him to have stumped up the cash for, but apparently isn’t in his collection, is the iconic flying Ford Anglia from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. If he really is worth $110 million, that might be one classic car to consider for the garage.