The casting team behind HBO's upcoming Harry Potter TV show has one of the toughest jobs in television history. They've got to find new cast members to play some of pop culture's most renowned characters. We're talking Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and so on. Plus, there's the added pressure of living up to the original movies, which had the most incredible cast!
The casting directors attached to the job are Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann. So far, they've had to sift through upwards of 30,000 applications for kids vying to play Harry, Ron, and Hermione, not to mention the myriad other characters that need to cast. Up to now, casting rumors have been pretty divisive. While we can see John Lithgow as Dumbledore, many viewers are uncertain about the reported casting of Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape. I mean, who could possibly replace the legendary Alan Rickman?
Not long ago, it was reported that Ted Lasso star Brett Goldstein was being eyed to portray Rubeus Hagrid, the kindly groundskeeper at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. For a man who previously played a stern footballer, Goldstein never really looked like a good fit for Hagrid. Now, Deadline reports that British comic and actor Nick Frost is in line to play Hagrid... and this is a casting I can absolutely get behind.
That said, it's still an impossible job to replace the legendary Robbie Coltrane from the movies. Objectively, however, Frost a perfect fit. Not only has he got the looks, but he's got the comedic prowess to really bring an element of freshness to the role.
It's worth noting that HBO hasn't officially confirmed this casting, or any of them, for that matter. “We appreciate that such a high-profile series will draw a lot of rumor and speculation,” the network said, per Deadline. “As we make our way through pre-production, we will only confirm details as we finalize deals.”
That said, a rather cryptic Instagram post from Frost seemingly points towards his casting in the Harry Potter show. "What a bloody lovely day!," he captioned, along with a selfie. "It’s happening, it’s actually happening. Stay cool."
John Lithgow doesn't think playing Dumbledore will be "that hard"
Circling back to Lithgow, he talked about playing the role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore during an episode of the Smartless podcast. Filming hasn't even started but strangers are already talking to him about the part. “Can you believe this has already started?” he asked. “The deal was only set, like, 48 hours ago, and in airports two weeks ago, somehow or other, people had gotten wind of this, and they were stopping me.”
Dumbledore is a memorable character from the Harry Potter books, but he doesn't appear that much, especially in the early going. Lithgow predicts that will make playing him relatively simple. “You know, Dumbledore is — he’s kind of the nuclear weapon. He only goes on very, very occasionally. I don’t think it’s gonna be that hard a job, and, we’ll just go back and forth," he said.
Lithgow is reading the Harry Potter books in preparation; he's currently on the second one, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. HBO's Harry Potter series begins filming this summer, with a release date expected either late 2026 or early 2027. Will you be watching? Or are you done with Harry Potter? Tell us in the comments down below!
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