Emma Watson Stopped By Airport Officials, Mistaken For 12-Year-Old

Emma Watson was stopped by airport officials during a visit to New York when they mistook her for an unaccompanied minor.

The incident happened when Watson flew into New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport over the Christmas holiday, the New York Daily News reported. There agents at passport control stopped her, thinking she was a child traveling by herself.

Just before Christmas, Emma Watson tweeted about being stopped to her 4.9 million Twitter followers: “Passport control:’unaccompanied minor?’ Me:’sorry?’ Passport control:’where is ur guardian?’ Me:’I’m 22!!!!!!!’ #neverwearingabackpackagain”

Most airports consider unaccompanied minors anyone 12 and under, though teens under age 18 can sometimes use unaccompanied minor service, The Huffington Post noted. It wasn’t clear how old the officials at JFK Airport thought Emma Watson was.

It appears that Emma Watson is still coping with the attention that mega-fame has brought her. The Harry Potter star talked to Glamour magazine earlier this fall about the sudden attention she’s seen, which included being caught kissing a male companion at the Coachella music festival.

“It was a huge crowd, and I thought there was no way anyone could get pictures of me, but somehow they found me,” Emma Watson said.

“It’s difficult on my dating life, because anyone I get photographed with is automatically my boyfriend. So it just makes it look as if I’ve had, like, 6,000 boyfriends!”

Emma Watson’s tweet about being stopped prompted more than 18,000 responses, with many fans consoling her for the unfortunate incident. Others pointed out that when she’s 40 she’ll enjoy being mistaken for a younger age.