‘Harry Potter’ Alum Rupert Grint Says He Invented Ed Sheeran

If you’ve ever seen “Harry Potter” actor Rupert Grint and “Shape of You” singer Ed Sheeran, you may have gotten the two confused. With both being red heads, sharing the same height and the same smirk, it’s easy to think the two might be the same person or even related. Well, you might not be wrong.

In a video posted by MTV on its Facebook page, the network brought out what it thought was Ed Sheeran. Sporting his signature flannel shirt, glasses and guitar, the “Castle On the Hill” singer got ready to sing a song until a bombshell was revealed.

Taking off his glasses, the fake Ed Sheeran revealed that he was actually “Snatched” star Rupert Grint, who invented the character. “After ‘Potter’ all I wanted to do was stretch myself. Create some real magic. So, I created a character with the voice of an angel, impossibly wispy facial hair,” said Grint.

To continue on with the creation of Sheeran, Grint says he bought a “guitar and a bunch of flannel” and came up with the name Ed. “Ed Sheeran, such a weird name… I just didn’t expect everyone to think he was real! He became my greatest acting achievement and the bane of my existence.”

If you’re wondering about Sheeran’s love for cats, Grint says that was fake too. “I hate cats. All of them. Mine. Taylor [Swift’s].”

Of course, Grint — who is promoting his new show “Snatched” — was only joking, as Ed Sheeran is in fact a real singer with a real album out called “Divide,” but the two have been dealing with the comparisons since 2011.

That year, Grint starred in Sheeran’s music video for “Lego House.” According to Grint, when fans approach him on the street, he never knows if they’re going to think he’s Rupert or Ed. “It’s kind of 50-50 now,” he told the “Late Late Show’s” James Corden. “It’s like [when] someone stops me, it could go either way. I could be Ed or I could be me.”