- One of only a few performers to get an Oscar-nomination for their debut performance.
- She was Jean-Pierre Jeunet's first choice to play the title role in Amélie (2001), but dropped out for personal reasons. She did manage to leave her mark on the film however; Amelie is named after her.
- Won the role of Bess in Breaking the Waves (1996) after Helena Bonham Carter dropped out at the last minute because of the film's explicit sexuality.
- Worked three times with Philip Seymour Hoffman: Punch-Drunk Love (2002), Red Dragon (2002) and Synecdoche, New York (2008).
- Graduated from Bristol University with a degree in English
- Daughter, Juliet, born November 2005.
- Her mother has a PhD in English, and is an English teacher.
- Second child, a boy named Dylan Waters, was born in 2009.
- Is often mistaken for Harry Potter actress Emma Watson due to similarity in name. She does not try to correct people and tells people that she is "quite flattered that people think I'm 21".
- Her performance as Bess McNeill in Breaking the Waves (1996) is ranked #18 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006).
- She was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2015 Queen's New Years Honours List for her services to drama. She is an actress in London SE10, England.
- Was Shekhar Kapur's first choice to play Elizabeth I in Elizabeth (1998) but turned it down for Hilary and Jackie (1998) and the role ended up going to Cate Blanchett. Meryl Streep was also another choice.
- Is just 16 years older than Felicity Jones, who played her daughter in The Theory of Everything (2014).
- Spent two years at the British Shakespeare School of Acting saying "News from town, my Lord." When Breaking the Waves (1996) premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 1996, someone grabbed Emily's shoulders and said to her, "Your life is about to change forever." And indeed it has.
- Was considered for the lead role in Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), along with fellow Brits Kate Winslet and Rachel Weisz, and American model-turned-actress Cameron Diaz.
- She was nominated for 2003 Laurence Olivier Theatre Award for Best Actress of 2002 for her performance in Uncle Vanya performed at the Donmar Warehouse.
- Was spotted by Lars von Trier during a representation of Lillian Hellman's "The Children's Hour", in which she played a young student who falsely accuses her teacher of lesbianism.
- She graduated from high school, went to University for three years, got a 2.1 ranking [in the English education system], then she applied to drama school but was refused. So she started waitressing and doing secretarial stuff along with some fringe theater. Then she applied to drama school again and was accepted, and did a one-year course. Her first professional job was in the Royal Shakespeare Company, in 1992.
- Shortly before filming began on Oranges and Sunshine (2010), her mother fell ill with encephalitis. Watson returned to London, but her mother passed away before she arrived.
- Was approached to play Emily Tallis in Atonement (2007). Harriet Walter was cast instead.
- Has worked three times with Geoffrey Rush: The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004), The Book Thief (2013) and Genius (2017).
- Supports the English soccer team Arsenal.
- Performing "Twelfth Night" and "Uncle Vanya" in New York off Broadway. (January 2003)
- Born on the same day as heavy metal guitarist Zakk Wylde. She also shares birthday with LL Cool J, Faye Dunaway and Jason Bateman.
- She was considered for the part of Mrs. Moravcová in Anthropoid (2016), eventually played by Alena Mihulová.
- Daughter of Richard (1940-2015) and Katharine (née Venables) Watson (1940-2010).
- Maternal granddaughter of Dennis (1898-1988) and Margaret (née Riach) Venables (1902-2000).
- Born on exactly the same date as Kerri Green.
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