Evanna Lynch

Evanna Lynch is an Irish actress and model best known for her role as Luna Lovegood in the "Harry Potter" film series, appearing in four "Harry Potter" films and their tie-in video games, and in the musical A Very Potter Senior Year

Lynch auditioned at a casting call in London for the role of Luna Lovegood in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," the fifth film in the series adapted from the books. After auditioning against 15,000 other girls, and a subsequent screen test with lead actor Daniel Radcliffe, she was cast at the age of 14. Producers were impressed with her affinity for the character. David Heyman said "The others could play Luna; Evanna Lynch is Luna." Although uninvolved in the casting process, Rowling believed that Lynch was perfect for the role.

She had never acted professionally before the "Harry Potter" series, her experience limited to school plays. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" was Lynch's debut screen performance in 2007. The film was a box office hit, taking US $938 million worldwide, and garnered generally favorable reviews. Critics praised the performances of the supporting cast, often singling out Lynch for particular acclaim. A. O. Scott of The New York Times called her performance "spellbinding," and Jane Watkins of Country Life said she "[brought] an appealing sweetness to her character that's not so developed in the book."

She reprised her role as Luna in the film's tie-in video game. Two years later, Lynch again starred as Luna in "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," the sixth installment in the series. The film was critically and financially successful. Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe wrote that Lynch as Luna "combats the movie's occasional sluggishness with a hilarious sluggishness of her own," and Michael Dwyer of The Irish Times called her the best Irish actress of 2009 for her work on the film. Her performance earned her Scream Award and Young Artist Award nominations, and she again reprised her role in the film's tie-in video game.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1," the first of two films adapted from the seventh and final "Harry Potter" book, was released in 2010. James Verniere of The Boston Herald commented that Luna "is still delightfully lunar."

The following year, Lynch again appeared as Luna in the eighth and final installment in the series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2." The film opened to universal critical acclaim and went on to become the fourth highest-grossing film of all time. Moira Macdonald of The Seattle Times wrote that Lynch "continues to be all-that-and-a-radish-earring as the ever-wafting Luna Lovegood."

In August 2012 at Leakycon in Chicago, she joined the cast of StarKid to play Luna Lovegood in a script reading of the third "Harry Potter" parody musical, "A Very Potter Senior Year" (the other two being "A Very Potter Musical" and "A Very Potter Sequel").

Lynch went on to guest star as Princess Alehna (daughter of Taryn, played by Orla Brady) in the first season finale of the Sky1 television series "Sinbad."

Outside of acting, Lynch has made and helped design a number of fashion accessories for the Harry Potter films. She has modeled for Katrin Thomas and Ciaran Sweeney, and in 2012, appeared on the cover of the Fall issue of Runway magazine.

She has also recorded an abridged audiobook version of Claire Keegan's short story "Foster." Her charity work includes participation with the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Ireland, in which she launched their MS Readathon fundraiser in 2010. Lynch is also a member of the Board of Advisors for the non-profit organization, the Harry Potter Alliance (HPA). With the HPA, she has supported same-sex marriage in Maine, taken part in a webcast fundraiser, written an article about body image, and contributed to a fundraising book.