Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley Will Return in Harry Potter Series But Don’t Expect Emma Watson to Make an Appearance
- HBO has opened a casting call for the new Harry Potter TV series seeking new actors for Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger.
- The series will have the freedom to explore deeper into the characters and stories that were left out.
- Absence of original actors like Emma Watson may be bittersweet for longtime fans.
There have not been many fantasy franchises that have left a mark on pop culture as much as Harry Potter. After the launch of the first book by J.K. Rowling in 1997, the movies came and made everyone familiar with the world of Hogwarts and popularized the magic genre in movies.
The last Harry Potter movie was released in 2011, and it has been over a decade since any further projects have been made, apart from the prequel series Fantastic Beasts. However, the announcement of the upcoming Harry Potter TV series has definitely raised expectations of Potterheads, although they won’t be seeing familiar faces.
Harry Potter Series Opens Casting Call for Harry, Ron, and Hermione
Apart from the magical world of Hogwarts and an interesting story that connects so many characters and details, the cast members made the movies so memorable. The lead cast of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint looked like they were born to play the roles.
But now, HBO has officially opened a casting call for the new Harry Potter TV series, and fans will see the return of the trio with new faces. The casting call is targeting children between the ages of 9-11 from the U.K. and Ireland. The call is similar to how Radcliffe, Watson, and Grint were originally cast, and none had any prior professional acting experience.
HBO is looking for inclusive and diverse casting and is looking to cast children of all races, ethnicities, and genders. The applicants will have to submit two short self-tapes: one should be a recitation of a poem or story that is not related to Harry Potter, and the other will be a self-introduction, including their date of birth, height, and other personal details.
The deadline for submissions is set for October 31, 2024, as the filming will begin in 2025. Francesca Gardiner will be the showrunner and executive producer. Mark Mylod will also be producing and directing multiple episodes, and J.K. Rowling will be there for her valuable input.
According to Deadline, the CEO of HBO, Casey Bloys, said that the project will run for 10 years, much like the films. Since none of the original actors might appear in the show, it will be a kind of bittersweet feeling among fans who grew up watching the films. But as Bloys promised it to be “a faithful adaptation” of Rowling’s work, it will be interesting to see how “faithful” it will be.
How Different Harry Potter Should Be in TV Remake
As this will be a TV series remake of the movies, there will be a freedom to work on details and explore the unexplored stories and characters earlier due to the constraints of the movie format. Earlier, the readers of the novels had some complaints about certain aspects that were not shown in the films.
The films had to tone down certain scenes and characters in order to make them more friendly and fitting for a larger audience. One such difference was with Potter’s character itself. In the books, Harry Potter is more assertive, sarcastic, and witty and has more angry moments as compared to what is shown in the movies.
Moreover, the movies focused more on the dramatic elements of Potter’s story. The TV series could rectify it by showing his growth as a wizard and how he got comfortable with magic as he was born for it. This will also show why he is a superior wizard to others, although Granger is the one who knows more spells.
Also, Potter’s romance with Ginny Weasley was more rushed in the movies. The TV series will have the chance to show the personal lives of wizards and witches along with their romantic involvements. Besides these, it can also explore the details of the prophecy and why Potter used to lose his temper at times.
Basically, the TV series has the opportunity to answer all the questions left from the movies and also push the boundaries of brutality and darkness. Although familiar actors won’t be seen this time, who knows, maybe the new actors will become the new faces of the beloved characters.
The Harry Potter movies are available to stream on Max.
