Harry Potter Filmmakers Rejected Brendan Gleeson’s Bizarre Request That Could’ve Become One of Franchise’s Funniest Jokes

Irish actor-director Brendan Gleeson is one of the most talented and well-respected artists in the industry who was listed on The Irish Times list of Ireland’s greatest film actors. The actor has been a part of some of the most iconic projects, including Troy, 28 Days Later, Braveheart, The Tragedy of Macbeth, The Banshees of Inisherin, and more. Gleeson was also a part of the Harry Potter film series in which he played Alastor ‘Mad-Eye’ Moody and was highly appreciated for his work.

Brendan Gleeson is now gearing up for the release of Joker: Folie à Deux, in which he stars alongside Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix. The movie premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival and received mixed reviews. However, Joker: Folie à Deux is still one of the hotly anticipated movies of 2024, scheduled for a release on October 4, 2024. Ahead of the release, Gleeson, during an interview, recalls one bizarre request he made while working on Harry Potter.

Brendan Gleeson recalled a special demand he had for the Harry Potter movie

Ahead of the release of his forthcoming movie, Joker: Folie à Deux, Irish actor Brendan Gleeson spoke to Jake’s Takes, where he was asked about how, as an actor, he prepares himself to enter a world that is already established. He said that he does not like to pre-judge the thing and does not try to fit into it because he believes that people will quickly tell them if they’re going outside the parameters.

The actor further explained that he reads the script and tries to explore what the character would have been in that place at that time. Gleeson once again clarified that he does not shoehorn himself into a franchise. He then recalled and shared,

I remember being asked to do something with the Harry Potter wand that would not have been possible. I wanted them to recreate Spire from Dublin.

He explained that the spire in Dublin is a kind of monument, and it’s like a big needle that goes right up the center of the town, so he asked the makers if they could make a wand like that for him. The makers told him that the wands had to be wooden, like a certain thing and thus his request was turned down.

He played Mad-Eye Moody in the movie, and in an interview with AV Club, he shared that he didn’t want to appear in franchise movies, but he did it for his kids. Gleeson explained,

I didn’t really want to do a franchise. That’s not my thing. Because I taught for 10 years. I said if I go on and there’s a bunch of brats here, I’m not going to be able to live with it. So I was kind of slightly terrified about the whole notion. And my kids were really excited about me doing it. But I signed up and I went onto the set, and it was a really positive thing. The kids were really lovely. They were allowed to grow up at a proper pace.

Talking about his look, he said that they wanted Moody to look like a Cyclops, but the more they talked about it, the more they wanted something that could make him look like a wizard. Gleeson extended his gratitude for the craftsmanship and added that before CGI just took over, they kept the eye in-camera, which, according to him, is the real magic in cinema.

Brendan Gleeson reveals why he said yes to Joker: Folie à Deux

In 2022, the Irish actor spoke to Collider about his decision to say yes to Joker: Folie à Deux, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. He very honestly said it was the achievement of the first movie that wanted him to be a part of the sequel. He shared,

I worked with Joaquin before on The Village, and so I knew him from then. And that performance—I’m still in awe of it. That performance was Joker in that first movie. It was one of the most extraordinary achievements I’ve ever had. And for Todd to have—worked the movie around to allow for that, I didn’t have to ask twice. I really didn’t.

In speaking on Jake’s Takes, the Irish actor said that he was so enamored of the first movie, but it was all to do with Joaquin Phoenix and what Todd has created. He mentioned that it had already stepped out of the genre for him and the prison was its world, so he let them create context, and then he tried to find it within. Gleeson noted that he does not consciously try to shoehorn himself into it.

Recently, it was reported by Deadline that the actor has also joined Amazon’s Marvel Series and will be opposite Nicolas Cage in Spider-Noir. It is a live-action series based on Marvel comics Spider-Man Noir.

Joker: Folie à Deux is scheduled for release on October 4, 2024.