MOS DIARY: Emma Watson hires £90,000 bodyguard as stalkers spark safety fears

Protected: Actress Emma Watson, 23, has a £90,000-a-year bodyguard

Harry Potter star Emma Watson has hired a former NYPD officer as a bodyguard to protect her from obsessed stalkers.

The actress – thought to be worth £23 million – is believed to be paying the female officer £90,000 a year after a number of incidents of threatening behaviour towards her.

The latest came as Emma, 23, right, was working on her new movie Noah, when an over-zealous ‘fan’ duped studio security staff and got on to the set.



Emma, was left screaming, believing she was in danger, and filming had to stop.

The British actress, who played Hermione Granger in the Potter films, is now constantly shadowed by blonde former New York Police Department officer Denise Morrone.

A source said: ‘The one person Emma is never without is Denise.



'Emma has had problems with stalkers in the past and, because of her wealth, there is always the threat of kidnap.



'She pays for her bodyguard out of her own pocket and Denise accompanies her everywhere, even when Emma is out for dinner.



'Denise is always there, making sure she is safe.’

Another source said: ‘Denise is on high alert for one particular stalker who tracked Emma down on the set of her latest film.

‘She is very discreet and very good at her job. She is always there looking after Emma, but you wouldn’t know.

‘She makes sure Emma has plenty of space and freedom. If they are at dinner, Denise is part of the gathering, but is always on duty.’

The new arrangement marks a departure for Emma, who has seemed determined to try to live a low-key, normal private life unencumbered by a security detail.

Being careful: Emma hired the female former NYPD officer after a number of incidents of threatening behaviour towards her

Post-Potter she went to Brown University in Rhode Island, New England, and Worcester College, Oxford, to study for a degree.

When she has appeared in public she has had no visible entourage.

A spokesman for Miss Watson, who has homes in London and New York, declined to comment.

The selfie craze has landed Kiefer Sutherland in hot water. The Hollywood star has been staying in London while shooting a film version of 24, but during a visit to exclusive private members’ club Soho House he broke the venue’s number one rule: no photographs.

‘He was told off twice by staff because he kept taking selfies,’ says a spy.

