I had decided to stay away from all the casting rumours for the new Harry Potter TV Series on HBO Max – although Sharon Horgan as Mrs McGonigle was inspired, just sayin’ – until the official announcements were made and here we all.
Yes, Hogwarts’ staff is starting to take shape very nicely, indeed.
Based on JK Rowling’s hit series of books and, to a lesser extent, the hit movies, the new series will start Harry Potter’s story from the beginning, this time giving the story time to flesh out new elements and stuff that were cut form the movies for time – I’d imagine the House Elves uprising will be a bigger part of the plot here, for example.
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But, while we don’t have any word on who will be playing Harry, Ron and Hermione – chances are, they’ll all be newcomers anyway, given the young age of the cast/characters – we are starting to see who will be playing the main adult roles in the adventure.
First up, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz star Nick Frost will be stepping into the late Robbie Coltrane’s massive shoes as the school’s gamekeeper, Hadrid.
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Next, picking up from Doctor Who star David Bradley as School caretaker Argus Filch will be The Fast Show’s Paul Whitehouse.
Stepping up to run Hogwarts as headmaster Albus Dumbledore, is Dexter and Planet of the Apes star John Lithgow. The actor recently commented on how he’s going to be well into his 80s by the time the series wraps, so this may well be his last big role onscreen, saying: “It was not an easy decision because it’s going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I’m afraid. But I’m very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to Harry Potter. That’s why it’s been such a hard decision. I’ll be about 87-years-old at the wrap party, but I’ve said yes.”
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Getting old is the worst, by the way.
Filling out the role made famous by the later Alan Rickman, of the villainous (until you get to know him) Severace Snape, is I May Destroy You star Paapa Essiedu – big shoes to fill, taking over from Rickman, that’s for sure.
The last two roles for now are Janet McTeer as Professor Minerva McGonagall and Luke Thallon as Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor Quirinus Quirrel, these roles were played previously by the legendary Maggie Smith and Ian Hart.
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“We’re delighted to have such extraordinary talent onboard, and we can’t wait to see them bring these beloved characters to new life,” said Francesca Gardiner, showrunner and executive producer of the series, and Mark Mylod (Shooting Stars, The Stand Up Show), director of multiple episodes and executive producer.
The series is expected to air in 2026, so we’d imagine there’s going to be a lot of casting news and then news from the series itself in the coming weeks and months.
Are you looking forward to returning to Hogwarts? Let me know…
Source: Comedy
Marc
Marc is a self-confessed nerd. Ever since seeing Star Wars for the first time around 1979 he’s been an unapologetic fan of the Wars and still believes, with Clone Wars and now Underworld, we are yet to see the best Star Wars. He’s a dad of two who now doesn’t have the time (or money) to collect the amount of toys, comics, movies and books he once did, much to the relief of his long-suffering wife. In the real world he’s a graphic designer. He started Following the Nerd because he was tired of searching a million sites every day for all the best news that he loves and decided to create one place where you can go to get the whole lot. Secretly he longs to be sitting in the cockpit of his YT-1300 Corellian Transport ship with his co-pilot Chewie, roaming the universe, waiting for his next big adventure, but feels just at home watching cartoons with his kids….
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