Emma Thompson recently admitted that she does not consider her work on the Harry Potter franchise a significant addition to her decorated creative resume.
Speaking at a Locarno Film Festival panel after the weekend’s Leopard Club Award event, Thompson spoke on a wide array of subjects, including the Monica Lewinsky controversy, being asked out by Donald Trump, and her role in Harry Potter.
In the series, Thompson played Sybil Trelawney, the Divination professor at Hogwarts who could read tea leaves and had some crucial prophecies about Harry Potter’s life.
Despite the vital role her character plays, the actor herself wouldn’t list Harry Potter towards the top of her acting portfolio.
“This is not really an important part of my creative endeavor,” she said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Emphasizing that very little was asked of her for the role, she said, “I’m really sorry. I don’t mean to be rude to those of you who like Harry Potter, but you know, I really came in, did a bit with glasses and hair, and then left, having been quite well paid.”
“I’m very grateful to them,” Thompson added.
Thompson’s Trelawney is primarily featured in Prisoner of Azkaban and has brief roles in Order of the Phoenix and Deathly Hallows: Part 2. It makes sense why she has little personal connection with the series compared to the main protagonists, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint.
Incidentally, Thompson is not the first actor to express such a sentiment. Miriam Margolyes, who played Professor Sprout, also had a similar experience.
Even though Thompson humbly downplays her character, Professor Trelawney significantly influences the story, which unfolds over seven books and eight movies. One of her early divinations included the prophecy about Lord Voldemort’s nemesis, which forms the crux of the entire story. The gravity of the prophecy is not entirely explored in the movies, but in the books, it holds the key to Harry being the "Chosen One."
The films steer clear of the ambiguity of the foretelling and the possibility that Neville Longbottom could’ve also been the one to defeat Voldemort had the Dark Lord marked him as his archrival. They also do not delve deep into Professor Snape’s role in Voldemort finding out about the prophecy.
HBO’s new Harry Potter show has yet to announce the cast for Professor Trelawney, probably because they are still working on the first book, and she does not appear until the third. Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton, and Alastair Stout play Harry, Hermione, and Ron, respectively.