Harry Potter and the Television Reboot: CASTING SEASON ONE

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Arguably the most important aspect of a hypothetical Harry Potter television reboot is the cast. The cast of this series will be almost entirely responsible for both bringing the world of Harry Potter back to life, and living up to the standards set for them by the original film series.

With that in mind, I will not be casting any of the student / child actor roles. There are a few reasons for this, but my biggest reason is the fact that there is so much undiscovered talent out there in the realm of child actors today. In fact, the most iconic child roles of the 2010s were portrayed by child actors who had never been discovered before. The same goes for the original film series as well; Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson were all ages 9-11, and with the exception of a few small roles, none of them had ever hit the limelight. I think that this is incredibly important because we need to have brand new faces to identify with these iconic characters — and I think it’s equally important that we as an audience are able to watch them grow up on screen.

With all of this being said, there is a truly unbelievable amount of talented adult actors and actresses who I think would bring these roles justice. Keep on scrolling to find out who I would love to see bring the Wizarding World to the small screen.

Professor Dumbledore: Charles Dance

Charles Dance has a true talent for commanding attention on the screen. In his role as the patriarch of the Lannister family in Game of Thrones, Dance’s presence on the screen seems to fill up the entire room with every scene his character is featured in. He has a presence onscreen that commands respect – a trait that was missing from the original film series – and with a darker and more intimidating Dumbledore, the feeling of the entire series as a whole will shift toward a darker tone.

Professor Dumbledore is arguably the most important figure in Harry’s life, and their relationship is supposed to grow throughout the series. For a television reboot, Dumbledore has to have a commanding presence that casts fear into his enemies – and Charles Dance would be incredibly believable as “the only wizard Voldemort feared the most.”

Professor McGonagall: Helen Mirren

I know, it feels impossible to replace or even attempt to replicate Maggie Smith’s original portrayal of Professor McGonagall; however, due to factors such as Maggie Smith’s age and health issues, it’s only reasonable to recast the role while remaining faithful to the feel of the original character. Therefore, I chose Helen Mirren to play Professor McGonagall.

 

My reasoning for this particular casting choice is the simple fact that Mirren – like Maggie Smith in the early 2000s – is regarded as a “classic” actress. As of February 2020, Mirren currently boasts an impressive filmography of 132 film and television appearances – most of which, she starred in. Therefore, she is definitely a seasoned actress in my book, and thus she is more than capable of excelling in a role of this magnitude.

 

Another major factor in deciding who to cast for Professor McGonagall was the age of the character in the books. In the original Harry Potter book series, the character is described to be about 70 years old… Guess how old Helen Mirren is? 74!

 

With all of that being said, I believe that Helen Mirren would be an interesting choice to cast as Professor McGonagall. She is an experienced and creative actress, and I would be very curious to see what she could do with this beloved character.

Professor Snape: Adam Driver

What can I say? Adam Driver fits the role of the mysterious, complicated, dark (and misunderstood ??) potions master to a T. First of all, let’s take a look at the description that J.K. Rowling herself provided for us in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone:

 

Professor Snape was a thin man with sallow skin, and a large, hooked nose. He had shoulder-length black hair which framed his face, and cold, black eyes. He wore black flowing robes which give him the appearance of an overgrown bat.^[58] 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
Chapter Eight – The Sorting Hat

 

I think that if HBO were to put Adam Driver in a black cloak that looks like an “overgrown bat,” he would make an extremely convincing Snape. Having just wrapped up the Star Wars series in December of 2019, Driver has more than enough experience playing a “dark, misunderstood ‘bad guy,'” with his portrayal of the main villain in the new trilogy, Kylo Ren.

 

While we’re on the topic of staying true to the original character description in the source material, Driver is the perfect age to play Snape. In the first book (which this hypothetical first season would be based on), Snape’s age would be placed at about 35-40. Driver himself is currently 36 years old, which would grant audiences the chance to watch him age perfectly in time with the original character as the show progresses through the span of seven seasons.

 

And finally, before anyone gets worked up about his acting ability, have you even seen this scene in Marriage Story? Yeah. He deserved that Oscar nomination, and he deserves your trust to break your heart over how much he loved Lily. 🙁

Hagrid: Kristofer Hivju

This was an easy one for me, as I have JUST stumbled across Kristofer Hivju this past summer during my six day Game of Thrones binge. I was watching the show for the very first time and I always caught myself laughing at one character in particular — Tormund Giantsbane, Hivju’s character. In GoT, Hivju portrays an outspoken, hilarious, kind-hearted, “rough around the edges” kind of character; and his character reminded me of an extremely vulgar version of Hagrid.

 

Hivju has many qualities as an actor that pointed me toward casting him as Hagrid: First, he has a unique ability to project his own personality into his roles, which easily establishes him as a lovable / relatable character. Second, he is tall and incredibly hairy, which is obviously a must for Hagrid. Finally, this hypothetical show would be produced by HBO, who are familiar with Hivju’s work and would be able to see the potential he would have to bring something new to another beloved role.

Vernon and Petunia Dursley: Ricky Gervais and Olivia Coleman

It was easy for me to pick an actress to play Aunt Petunia Dursley, because I’ve had my eye on Olivia Coleman for the role ever since her work on The Favourite and season 3 of The Crown. Coleman has striking features, as well as a true sense of creativity which she could use to her advantage in order to create a memorable character. Petunia had a bigger role in the original book series, and with all of the extra time that a TV series would provide for storytelling, I think that Coleman might be able to bring an interesting perspective to Harry’s abusive aunt.

 

For Uncle Vernon, I had a little bit more trouble. I wanted somebody around Olivia Coleman’s age, and I also wanted somebody who is established in the world of comedy, drama and television. Ricky Gervais is not only an extremely talented and globally famous comedian, but he also has dipped his hand into working in drama as well. In his Netflix series After Life, Gervais stunned audiences with his dramatic and intense portrayal of a man who is contemplating taking his own life. Gervais definitely has a propensity for dramatic acting, as well as the obvious talent he has for comedy – which makes him the perfect choice to play the ever so irritating Uncle Vernon.

Mr. Ollivander: Jeremy Irons

Ollivander is a smaller role who only appears a handful of times throughout the series, and there was nobody else who fit the role better in my mind than Jeremy Irons. Irons is a recent HBO alum, having just premiered the new series Watchmen in 2019, and he is one of the finest actors to grace the small screen. Though Ollivander’s role is a small one, it is very imporant, as he is the character who gives Harry his first wand and also exposes new information to him about himself and his destiny.

 

I think that Jeremy Irons has a very memorable and significant impact as an actor on viewers. People remember his face and his iconic voice, therefore I believe he is the perfect choice to portray a character who is both essential to the story, while also remaining obscure.

Professor Quirrell: Andrew Scott

Honestly nobody can play an unhinged villain like Andrew Scott can. Scott is most widely known for his role as Moriarty in the popular BBC series Sherlock, as well as his role as the priest in Fleabag.

 

If you have even seen just one clip of his work in Sherlock, then you probably agreed with me immediately on this choice. He can be both charming AND terrifying, which is perfect for the role of “poor stuttering Professor Quirrell.”

Nearly Headless Nick: Ian McElhinney

I was lucky enough to come across Ian McElhinney while bingeing both GoT and Netflix’s Derry Girls. McElhinney would be fun to watch in this small role, because he has made me laugh repeatedly whenever I’ve seen him onscreen. Nearly Headless Nick is a comedic side character and I think that McElhinney could do really funny and interesting things with this role.

Mr. Filch: Terrence Stamp

Mr. Filch is a fan favorite among fans of the original series. He is the silly, strange and somewhat menacing caretaker at Hogwarts and I believe that the person who could do this role justice, while also providing a new take on the character, would be Terrence Stamp.

 

Stamp creeped me and several other kids out in his role as the butler in The Haunted Mansion, but he also was able to sneak in a somewhat funny aspect to the ghostly character. Stamp would fit the role of Filch very well, as he has the ability to be both terrifying and funny simultaneously.

What’s next?

 

If you made it to the bottom of this post then congratulations! You are a true fan of Harry Potter and you have an abundant amount of trust in the abilities of strangers to make cool lists. To wrap this one up, I would just like to say that these are my own personal opinions on who should play whom in a hypothetical Harry Potter television series. In a series of posts, I’ll be casting every new character who appears in each new season. Each season will be based faithfully on its corresponding book in the series, and I am going to try and be faithful to book descriptions when it comes to casting actors.

 

In my next post in this series, I will be casting season two of Harry Potter on HBO: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. If you have any of your own ideas for who should play whom in this first season, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, comment down below! 🙂