Harry Potter star Tom Felton says Daniel Radcliffe is a 'brother' to him in real life: 'I love him dearly'

While they might have gone toe-to-toe against one another in some pretty contentious wizard duels throughout the Harry Potter films, there's nothing but love between Tom Felton and Daniel Radcliffe in real life.

Felton, who recently released a memoir titled Beyond the Wand, explained that the pair have a "fantastic" relationship with one another despite playing bitter rivals Draco Malfoy (Felton) and Harry Potter (Radcliffe) for all eight installments of the blockbuster film franchise.

"I love the man dearly," Felton told CBS Mornings. "I don't see him as much as I'd like to — that's the same for all of us, really — but I consider him a brother, definitely. Huge amounts of respect for him."

In particular, Felton said that he always admired how Radcliffe — who was only 12-years-old when they shot the first movie — brought "a certain energy to any room he's in" on set that quickly translated to the rest of the cast.

"It was important to me, looking back, how important his enthusiasm and his eventual professionalism runs down the ranks, if you will," he reflected. "He could've very much easily, I think, coasted a lot of those years. And it seemed to me, on set with him, that he was always up for bringing as much as he can to the table, always being collaborative."

The star shared that he and Radcliffe were able to glean acting tips from the "other chaps around us" too. The series boasted an incredible roster of talented actors over the years, including late actors Alan Rickman and Robbie Coltrane as well as Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Dame Maggie Smith, and more.

Felton also shared his support for the idea that Draco and Harry "could be" considered two sides of the same coin. After all, the pair are not only in rival Hogwarts houses, but also share diametrically opposed upbringings too.

While describing Harry, Felton said that, despite his heartbreaking origin story, Radcliffe's character largely lives in a world that is filled with love and light. He added, "Essentially, you have one boy who has no parents, no money, no status, but he has everything that is good with the world: He has love and compassion and friends and truth and honesty."

In contrast, the actor said his character Draco is one that secretly toils within the shadows and often struggles with expressing his emotions in a productive way.

"The other side is the slightly darker one, [with] very powerful parents, lots of money, big house, all the toys, but also a bully and someone that can't find a way of expressing his light, because he hasn't been shown any his entire life," Felton explained. "These are broad sweeps of the brush, but I think it's fairly true."

Watch Felton talk about his friendship with Radcliffe above.

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