He's Harry Potter's best friend and the cutest redhead around.

Rupert Grint started off like any other Harry Potter fan--he read the books.

"Ron [Weasley] was always my favorite character," says the laid-back 17-year-old, who is from a small town in Hertfordshire, England. "We both have ginger hair and come from big families."

He's reprising his role as the comically adorable Ron Weasley for the fourth time in Goblet of Fire, centered around the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament.

This summer he took time out from Harry Potterland to film Driving Lessons. He plays shy-guy Ben, who has to deal with an overprotective mother and, yes, get a license. Rupert is also learning to drive in real life. He likes American classics like Mustangs and Camaros.

Although there's no girlfriend right now, he may want to change his name to LL Cool R (Ladies Love Cool Rupert). He has admirers from all over the world. "For some reason, most of my fan letters are from Japan. They send me origami!" That's because they think you're kawaii*, Rupert.

*cute in Japanese

[ELLEGirl Magazine || December/January 2006 Issue || Original article found here]