Daniel Radcliffe Calls New 'Harry Potter' the Best One Yet (VIDEO)

'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 2' is selling out midnight screenings and has had Potter fans buzzing for well over a year. As if it needed even more hype, Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Harry Potter himself, said Thursday on 'Today' (weekdays, 7AM on NBC) that this is the best film yet in the series.

Radcliffe called the movie a "fantastic piece of filmmaking," the best in the series "by such a long way." And he's happy the franchise is going out on such a high note. "I'm so proud of it, and I haven't been pleased with all the films," he said. "Like number six, I was very open about the fact that I particularly hated my own performance in it. This film is so far ahead of anything else we've done."

Radcliffe admitted there is some sadness to leaving the role behind, but said it's also an exciting time. "You can't stay 11-years-old forever," he lamented. "You can't continue doing this franchise for the rest of my life." Unless, of course, you're Bart Simpson or Chris Griffin.