'Beauty & The Beast' Lead Emma Watson to Star Alongside Tom Hanks in Technology Thriller 'The Circle'

Emma Watson has definitely shed the role of Hermione Granger from the "Harry Potter" franchise. While she's going to be remembered as the wizard's brainy friend, she made sure that it won't be the name she's going to be associated with for the rest of her life.

The UN Ambassador also starred in the coming-of-age drama, "The Perks of Being a Wallflower," in an epic tale in "Noah," and will soon be a Disney Princess in the live-action version of "Beauty and the Beast."

Recently, it was also announced that she will be a tech wizard in a technology thriller opposite Tom Hanks in a film adaptation of Dave Egger's bestseller, "The Circle," as reported by Variety. The story is about a young woman named Mae (to be portrayed by Watson) who finds a job at a tech company called The Circle. In a dark turn, she meets an older man (Hanks) and realizes the extent of invasion of privacy in a world full of surveillance technology and social media with the company's ability to link user's personal emails, social media networks, banking ,and purchasing, in their universal operating system that results to one online identity in the modern age.

Although "The Circle" seemed to be patterned after Google and Facebook, the author explained in an interview that the story was set in the not-so-distant future, and that the company "has subsumed all the big tech companies around today."

Written and to be directed by James Ponsoldt (The Spectacular Now) he said in a statement via Vanity Fair that Watson's intelligence was an integral part of the actress being given the role. He explained, "Emma Watson is one of my favorite actors, and her incredible talent, sensitivity, and deep intelligence will bring an electric energy to 'The Circle.'"

Watson will begin shooting for "The Circle" in September, after she wraps up with Disney for "Beauty and the Beast," which will be released on March 17, 2017.

The film will be produced by Hanks and Gary Goetzman, along with Anthony Bregman and Ponsoldt, with Walter Parkes and Laurie McDonald. Deadline noted that Image Nation Abu Dhabi will be financing, and the film will be presented in association with Parkes McDonald Productions. International sales will be handled by IM Global, while U.S. film rights will be repped by the UTA Independent Film Group and CAA.

Do you think Emma Watson will fare well in a thriller?