"At the same time series star Daniel Radcliffe has matured from a just-OK child actor to a performer of substance. Apparently his run of “Equus” on the London stage was no fluke — the kid shows genuine depth here, nicely delineating both Harry’s teenage angst and augmenting it with his understandable fears of the growing power of What’s-His-Name, that murderous wizard who over the last few films has been working to achieve corporeal form." The State
"In his latest fantasy adventure, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth and easily the best film in the franchise, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) makes good on those hints in earlier films that he has what it takes to stand up and throw down." The Age
"As for Mr. Potter himself, Radcliffe is showing remarkable growth as an actor, and he helps make even the dullest parts of Phoenix worth watching." Film Critic
"The best thing about Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is watching teenager Daniel Radcliffe grow into the role of Harry. If you've read the books, you'll notice now more than ever before why Daniel Radcliffe makes such a superb Harry Potter—because he's a fine, young actor who has the ability to really tap into the character and understand it completely. And because he understands the character so well, he plays him so naturally on screen.
Just look at him in those scenes when he wakes up sweating from those nightmares, or the scene in which he shares his first romantic moment—this isn't just good acting, it's excellent acting because it never looks like acting.! The only other performance that stays with you in this film is Imelda Staunton's who plays the mean-spirited Professor Dolores Umbridge." Yahoo
"Daniel Radcliffe carries the weight of the series on his young shoulders with admirable skill. He’s aging into more than just a kid with a scar on his forehead - he’s becoming a fine actor in his own right." Big Picture
"The Order of the Phoenix offers considerable growth in the title character. Gone are the big eyes and smiles of wonder, gone is the "magic" of youth, slowly being replaced with the moodiness of the teenage years. Harry is recognizing the real dangers around him, and he is becoming more of an adult, making decisions and hesitantly taking up a leadership role in the battle that is to come. It is interesting to think of the growth that he has attained over the course of five movies; to see it visualized is quite good. Daniel Radcliffe slips into character like a worn-in coat; he has been playing it so long that it cannot take long to get into that mindset and become this young man who seems to attract danger."
TV/FILM Blog Critics
"Daniel Radcliffe deserves special mention for finally—in his fifth crack at the title role—delivering a consistently satisfying performance. His talent has been evident from the beginning of the series, but until this film, he has had both hot and cold moments. No longer. This time he is 100 percent hot (in more ways than one)." The Crimson
"Phoenix is the biggest challenge yet for 17-year-old star Daniel Radcliffe, playing a character who is no longer a cute little boy but a prickly teen with a chip on his shoulder. This aspect of his personality is developed efficiently in short bursts of temper, just as the filmmakers take time to show the growing bond between Harry and his godfather, Sirius Black (Gary Oldman). Harry's romance with Cho Chang, on the other hand, is dispensed with in three waves of a wand." NBC Central
"... The growth he [Daniel} has shown over the years is remarkable. He proves it again in Phoenix , comfortably commanding the screen through his star presence and an increasingly accomplished performance, as Harry steps up to lead and finally comes of age." The Epoch Times
"Yates clearly spent time with the actors, and the performances are better than ever...Radcliffe has never been the most naturalistic actor; in the earlier installments you could almost see the director coaching him from the sidelines. But being around these great thespians seems to have finally paid off. He even manages to share a few scenes with that master of intensity, Gary Oldman, and not get blown off the screen. This movie, much more so than the others, rests on his shoulders, and part of the exhilaration here is seeing him finally bloom into a real actor." (Not share his views but that was a nice complement for Dan who it looks to be the only young actor he was impress with.) Box Office Prophets
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will be remembered best as the movie where Harry's portrayer, Radcliffe, came into his own. Facing off against Umbridge, Voldemort and the nasty Prof. Snape (Alan Rickman), or in a tender moment with his crush Cho Chang (Katie Leung), Radcliffe shows maturity of his acting since the first movie. Just as Harry has grown into a leader of his Hogwarts classmates, Radcliffe has become the man who drives this series." Whittier Daily
"Even Daniel Radcliffe's pivotal performance as the eponymous wizard, which undermined some of the earlier films, has improved greatly. He has finally realised that when it comes to acting in front a camera, which picks up every subtle shift of emotion, less is more. The infamous kiss with Cho Chang (Katie Leung) is artfully staged, without a single hesitation or nervous clattering of noses - you smooth devil, Harry." The Scotsman
"And at the end of one of the lessons he gets his first kiss with fellow student Cho Chang. Daniel Radcliffe, as Harry, plays this key moment with suitable tenderness and his overall performance is strong. Most notably, the banter between Harry and his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, is now totally natural." The Sun
"And so the Harry Potter saga continues. It's essentially deeply conservative, with battles, and crashes, and giants and explosions and is shaping up to be an extraordinary real-time experiment for Daniel Radcliffe. Plenty of young actors complain that they did their growing up in public. For Radcliffe that is literally true. When the saga is finally complete, its sheer bulk will be impressive, and we will gasp at Radcliffe's remarkable stamina and maturity in the role: a testing experience for any actor, but one that he has managed without going obviously mad, and with enough wit to send himself up on Ricky Gervais's TV comedy Extras". The Guardian
"This is definitely Daniel's first screen romance and he handled it very well...He's younger than me, but so mature and he's so experienced as an actor and I could get tips off him."
"We were near a high school and there were streams, waves of girls running down the street...There were like, 100 girls banging on the windows and he was like, 'Hi,' and he signed all the autographs and stayed half an hour."
"It was bizarre. If only Teresa was running after me, then I'd be really happy. No, Teresa's beautiful but I don't want to start any rumours. She's got a huge boyfriend, who's a big Aussie rules footballer, Stewie [Dew]."
EMMA: "I’m really nervous. I can’t believe I’m here, I can’t believe I’m here. I’m so honored to be here, I think it’s probably the biggest thing I’ve ever done in my entire life.”
RUPERT: "This is just so incredible. We’re so nervous, it’s surreal, we’re honored – (can’t hear the rest because the crowd is screaming sooooo loud!)
DANIEL (screaming even louder if that’s at all possible) Thank you all very, very much for coming. This is extremely amazing to join people like John Wayne, and just looking around at some of the other names here is remarkable. Thank you for letting us do this.”
