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After an extensive search, the actors set to play the new leads of the Harry Potter TV series have been found.
The open casting call for British children ages 9 to 11 led HBO to the three leads of its multi-season television series: newcomers Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley and Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger.
“After an extraordinary search led by casting directors Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, we are delighted to announce we have found our Harry, Hermione and Ron,” said Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod, the executive producers, in a statement. “The talent of these three unique actors is wonderful to behold, and we cannot wait for the world to witness their magic together onscreen. We would like to thank all the tens of thousands of children who auditioned. It’s been a real pleasure to discover the plethora of young talent out there.”
The three child actors round out the world first imagined by JK Rowling in her smash seven-book series and played by a who’s who of British actors across eight feature films released between 2001 and 2011.
Last month, HBO confirmed, after much speculation, that John Lithgow would play Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry originally played by Richard Harris and Michael Gambon, in the series designed to run for over a decade, with at least one season per book.
Other confirmed cast include series regulars Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall and Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, as well as Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell and Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch.
“We’re delighted to have such extraordinary talent onboard, and we can’t wait to see them bring these beloved characters to new life,” Gardiner and Mylod said at the time.
The series will be a “faithful adaptation” of the books by Rowling, “full of the fantastic detail, much-loved characters and dramatic locations that Harry Potter fans have loved for over 25 years”, according to Max, the streaming service for HBO soon to be renamed HBO Max, in a statement upon the series announcement in April 2023.
“Each season will be authentic to the original books and bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world, while the original, classic and beloved films will remain at the core of the franchise and available to watch globally.”
Rowling, who maintains ownership over key aspects of Harry Potter intellectual property, including the characters, will serve as an executive producer on the series. Her involvement has drawn controversy from some fans of the franchise for her numerous anti-trans statements, which led to a rift with the original films’ three stars. In March, Rowling appeared to take a swipe at Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint on social media, five years after the actors publicly rebuked an essay in which she called arguments about “femaleness not residing in the sexed body … deeply misogynistic and regressive”.
Asked by journalist Matthew Belloni if Rowling’s views on transgender people made him concerned for the show, HBO’s chief content officer Casey Bloys told The Town podcast in April: “We already have a show on HBO from her called CB Strike that we do with the BBC. It’s pretty clear that those are her personal, political views. She’s entitled to them. Harry Potter is not secretly being infused with anything. And if you want to debate her, you can go on Twitter.”
The 59-year-old author’s expansive Harry Potter world – including the books, films, video games and theater – is worth an estimated £20bn ($25bn).
Gardiner, an executive producer, will also serve as showrunner for the new series. She was previously a writer and consulting producer for the HBO hit Succession, as well as a writer/producer on His Dark Materials and Killing Eve. Mylod, a regular director for Succession, will direct several episodes in association with Brontë Film and TV and Warner Bros Television.
The HBO series is expected to debut in 2026, almost 30 years after the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (also known as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone), was published in 1997, and 15 years after the final film, The Deathly Hallows Part 2, hit theaters.
