25 famous alumni from RI colleges and universities. Emma Watson is just the start.

With a lot of universities and colleges, Rhode Island has its fair share of famous graduates.

There are people who came here to study, such as actress Emma Watson, and people who lived and grew up in Rhode Island such as actress Viola Davis. And while there are plenty of entertainers on this list, there are also government officials, such as Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen and Chef Emeril Lagasse.

The Providence Journal took a stab at naming five famous alumni (some of them didn't graduate) from five of the state's colleges. Here's who made the list.

5 famous alumni of Brown University

Emma Watson

The actress left the set of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts for Brown University to pursue her non-magical studies. She graduated in 2014.

John Krasinski

Best known for his role in "The Office" as Jim Halpert, he spent his college years performing with Brown’s sketch comedy group “Out of Bounds.” He graduated in 2001.

Janet Yellen

The United States Secretary of the Treasury and previously the 15th chair of the Federal Reserve, Yellen is one of the most powerful people in finance. She graduated in 1967.

John F Kennedy Jr.

The son of the 35^th President of the United States, JFK Jr. picked Brown over Harvard University for his college years. He graduated in 1983.

Tracee Ellis Ross

The actress starred in the television shows "Black-ish" and "Girlfriends." She also owns a hair-care line for curly hair called Pattern Beauty. She graduated in 1994.

5 famous alumni from Rhode Island School of Design

Seth McFarlane

"Family Guy," "American Dad" and "The Cleveland Show" are all Seth McFarlane’s creations. He graduated from RISD in 1995.

Most of the Talking Heads

Three of the original four members of the band – David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth— met at RISD. Byrne and Frantz were originally in a band called The Artistics, but dissolved that band and then started Talking Heads, which is when Frantz girlfriend Weymouth joined. Frantz and Weymouth graduated in 1974. Byrne left without completing his degree.

Brian Chesky

Named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in 2015, Chesky is the co-founder of Airbnb. He graduated in 2004.

Dale Chihuly

Not many glass artists become household names, but Chihuly has for his stunning large-scale installations. He did his graduate work at RISD and is credited with starting the glass-blowing program there.

James Franco

You’ve seen him in Spider-Man in the original trilogy, as a mountaineer forced to amputate his own arm in "127 hours" and as a laid-back drug dealer in "Pineapple Express." He took graduate classes at RISD in 2010.

5 famous alumni from Johnson & Wales University

Emeril Lagasse

A name that most home chefs recognize, Lagasse taught Americans to cook on his Food Network shows. He graduated in 1978.

Tyler Florence

Having been with the Food Network since 1996, you’ve probably seen him on one of the shows, such as "The Great Food Truck Race," "Food Court Wars" or mentoring home cooks on "America's Best Cook." He graduated in 1991.

Aaron Sanchez

He’s a judge on "MasterChef" and "MasterChef Jr," a regular on the Food Network, the chef and owner of Johnny Sanchez in New Orleans, the creative director of Cocina, and is a partner at a tattoo shop. He went to Johnson and Wales in 1996.

 Anna Olson

She’s more famous in Canada because she was on "Fresh with Anna Olson," "Sugar," "Kitchen Equipped" and "Bake with Anna Olson" in the Canadian branch of The Food Network, but she’s also been on HGTV and written cookbooks among other projects. She attended the Johnson and Wales Denver campus before it was closed.

Mehmet Gürs

One of the most recognized chefs of Istanbul, whose restaurant Mikla is consistently rated one of the best in the world. He graduated in 1993.

5 famous alumni from the University of Rhode Island

Lamar Odom

A former Los Angeles Laker, he was on the team for their 2009 and 2010 championships, as well as being named the National Basketball Association Sixth Man of the Year in 2011. He was also married to Khloe Kardashian. He played one season with URI in 1999.

Christiane Amanpour

The chief international anchor for CNN, you can see Amanpour every night on the evening news as the host of CNN International’s nightly interview program Amanpour. She graduated in 1983.

John King

It’s not just CNN’s chief international anchor that comes from URI. Their chief national anchor, John King, is also a URI graduate. He’s been the anchor of “Inside Politics” but recently announced he will stepping down from that spot to take a new role focused on voters in battleground states. He graduated in 1985.

Tony Horton

Most famous for developing the P90X workout used by people like congressman and former NFL quarterback Heath Schuler, actor Ashton Kutcher, and rocker Bruce Springsteen. He attended URI from 1976 to 1980.

Michael Flynn

A retired United States Army lieutenant general, Flynn was influential in shaping the U.S. counterterrorism strategy and a part of dismantling insurgent networks in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. He was the U.S. National Security Advisor for the first 22 days of Trump’s administration. He graduated in 1981.

Before the fall: Mike Flynn

5 famous alumni from Providence College

John O'Hurley

You’ve seen him on "Seinfeld" as J. Peterman or maybe when he was hosting "Family Feud" from 2006 to 2010. He graduated in 1976.

Peter Farrelly

Known for directing and producing romantic comedies, often with his brother, such as "Dumb and Dumber," "Shallow Hal," and "There’s Something About Mary." Most recently, he’s directing the television show "Lucky Hank." He graduated in 1979.

Doris Burke

A basketball analyst for ESPN and ABC, Burke played on the women’s basketball team at Providence College. She graduated in 1987.

Janeane Garofalo

A standup comedian and actress, she’s starred in films like "Wet Hot American Summer," "Mystery Men" and "Ratatouille." She graduated in 1986.

Robert C. Gallo

A researcher, Gallo co-discovered HIV as the infectious agent in AIDS, which changed diagnostics and protected patients receiving blood transfusions. He graduated in 1959.

5 famous alumni from Rhode Island College

Viola Davis

One of the most acclaimed actresses of the era — she’s an EGOT, after all — Davis has deep Rhode Island roots, including graduating from Rhode Island College in 1988.

Jim Langevin

The first quadriplegic elected to Congress, Langevin’s first election was to a student government seat his first year at RIC. He’s currently teaching at the University of Rhode Island and Brown University. He graduated in 1990.

Pete Gaynor

He was the FEMA Administrator during the COVID-19 pandemic, and very briefly in January 2021 serves as the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security. He graduated in 1986.

More: Trump administration insider from RI led the federal COVID response. Then Jan. 6 happened

Annie Peck Smith

A mountaineer, the northern peak of Huascarán in the western Andes is named Cumbre Aña Peck after her. She graduated in 1872.

Allan Fung

Rhode Island famous, the former mayor of Cranston, who recently made headlines for his Congressional bid, graduated in 1992.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the names of the band that proceeded Talking Heads. It was The Artistics.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: 25 famous alumni from RI schools, including Brown, RISD, URI, and RIC