As HBO prepares to launch the Harry Potter TV show, fans are already looking beyond the first season to the future. The plan is to adapt all seven of J.K. Rowling’s classic novels over the course of around a decade, with the series allowing for more character development and expansions on the books' plotlines.
Obviously, a key role to be cast will be Lord Voldemort. The grand villain of the saga doesn’t appear “on screen” until his resurrection in the fourth book, The Goblet of Fire, but his presence is felt long before that. It’s possible the show may decide to show Voldemort earlier to lay the seeds for his later dominance.
Ralph Fiennes was magnificent in the role in the Harry Potter movies, putting up with a complex makeup job to portray this evil wizard leading a war against the Wizarding World and Muggles alike. Some fans have pushed for Fiennes to reprise the role for the TV show, as he’d no doubt still do well with it.
Appearing on The Claudia Winkleman Show, Fiennes made it clear that he was done with Voldemort.
“I remember being asked the question once we’d shot the total film series, would I reprise the part, and this was some years ago. I said, ‘Yes, I’d love to. But then nothing’s happened and I think that ship has sailed," he said.
That may be disappointing to some, but Fiennes does have a fantastic choice for who could take over as Voldemort in the new HBO show.
This Oscar winner as Voldemort?
Fiennes revealed to Winkleman that he favors an offbeat choice to play Voldemort for HBO. “But I’ll tell you, Tilda Swinton was mentioned somewhere as being a contender, and I think she would be amazing," he said.
This may seem odd to nominate a woman to play Voldemort. However, if anyone could pull it off, it’s Tilda Swinton. The Oscar-winning actress has made a career of portraying bizarre roles and characters from her breakout as the gender-bending immortal in 1992’s Orlando to Snowpiercer, Trainwreck and becoming the Ancient One for Doctor Strange and the MCU. She has bounced from major blockbusters to unusual indies with ease and proven she can tackle any role. Swinton doesn’t simply act; she completely vanishes into a character to the point that some viewers may not even realize it’s her.
Swinton has actually been cited by some fans as a good choice for the role. Volemort already looks inhuman and Swinton has played male characters on screen before; check out her transformation for the movie Suspira. She’s no stranger to fantasy either, having played the White Witch in the Disney Narnia movies. Swinton could easily tackle this part, as her voice alone would be stellar, selling Voldemort’s rasps and threats.
This may be pie-in-the-sky casting with the producers going for a more “traditional” choice for Voldemort. Still, Swinton playing the Dark Lord would only make this Harry Potter show a bigger event for fans.
The Harry Potter movies are streaming on HBO Max. The new Harry Potter television series premieres Christmas, 2026.
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