For better or worse, we are getting a new adaptation of author J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books in the form of an TV show where each season will cover one book in the franchise. The show will stream on Max sometime in the future.
Some think it’s too soon for a new version of the story, since the final Harry Potter film came out just over a decade ago and it will be hard for a series to nail the story like the movies did. But it’s happening, and we’re going to hope for the best.
There are a ton of characters in the Harry Potter series, which means Max has its work cut out for it finding new actors to play them. We’d thought we’d dream-cast a new lineup.
Since many of the central characters are children when the series begins, we can’t really dreamcast actors for the likes of Harry, Hermione, Ron. Most likely, the proper choices for those roles will be unknown child actors who may well grow into stars as the series goes on. But there is no shortage of adult characters in this story, so let’s see if we can’t find the right actors to bring them to life.
Sean Bean as…Albus Dumbledore
Albus Dumbledore is the kindly, influential headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Whoever plays him needs to have enough authority to embody the all-knowing and all-powerful patriarch, but also be gentle and light-hearted at times.
Sean Bean strikes me as a good choice, for a number of reasons. First, he has experience with big budget high-fantasy series, as when he played Borimir in The Lord of the Rings and Ned Stark on Game of Thrones. Bean’s career stretches back to the ’80s with a long list of memorable parts. He’s been in action movies and dramas, played heroes and villains. He has the chops to play pretty much anyone.
Bean’s performance as Ned Stark provides a great point of comparison. Although Ned is not a wizard, he’s an experienced battle commander who inspires respect, a quality that will transfer well to Dumbledore. Ned was also a loving father who tried to teach his children how to survive in a world full of darkness. Consider his scenes with his daughter Arya. At the time, Arya was an inexperienced young girl who, like Harry Potter, had potential but needed a teacher. Ned was able to fill that role just like Dumbledore does with Harry.
At the end of the day, Dumbledore is a teacher and Bean has done this kind of thing before. I can easily see him not only giving speeches to the Hogwarts students on the first day of school, but also going toe to toe with Voldemort with ice in his veins.
Tom Hiddleston as…Severus Snape
Alan Rickman played Professor Snape in the Harry Potter movies, and his shoes will be impossible to fill. But Tom Hiddleston has the edgy goth vibes to get as close to Rickman’s one-of-a-kind performance as possible. Look no further than his role as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Loki’s backstory is similar to Snape’s in that they both live a life disconnected from others, mostly by choice. I think Hiddleston has the experience, imagination and talent to nail this character.
And Snape’s casting needs to be as perfect as possible, because he’s part of this story from beginning to end. Snape is one of the most important characters in the franchise and he is involved in many of the most important plot points. He’s one of Harry’s most annoying adversaries and also one of his most steadfast supporters. Whoever plays him will have to deliver a layered performance. Tom Hiddleston can do it.