Meanwhile Frost, best known for his roles in the comedy films Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, will take over from Robbie Coltrane as Hagrid, the Hogwarts groundskeeper and half-giant who becomes a faithful friend and ally to Harry and his friends.
The new casting announcement will undoubtedly draw much reaction from Potter fans. There had already been division after rumours first emerged that Essiedu was being considered to play Snape, who is described in the books as having “greasy, shoulder-length black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin”. Others were concerned that a US star had been cast to play Dumbledore.
The casting for the trio of main characters – Harry, Hermione and Ron – is yet to be announced, though it is likely they will be played by newcomers after Warner Bros launched an open casting call for children aged between nine and 11 last autumn. There have also been rumours that Cillian Murphy is being considered to play Voldemort.
According to HBO, the series will be a “faithful adaptation” of the books by Rowling, who serves as an executive producer. With a new cast, the show will delve into more detail than the eight feature films spawned by the epic franchise, released between 2001 and 2011.
The series will be “full of the fantastic detail, much-loved characters and dramatic locations that Harry Potter fans have loved for over 25 years”, Max, the newly branded streaming service for HBO, promised 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 has ownership over key aspects of the Harry Potter intellectual property, including the characters. But her involvement in the show has been divisive because of her opinions about trans people, which have drawn criticism from some of the franchise’s original stars. The writer’s expansive Harry Potter world – including the books, films, video games and theatre – is worth an estimated £20bn ($26bn).
At London’s Kings Cross station, site of the fictional platform 9 and ¾, fans were ambivalent about the cast.
“As someone who grew up with the books, I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ve created,” said 25-year-old Grace Whitehill from London. “But at the same time, I don’t want my experience to be ruined if they create something that’s too far from what JK Rowling originally wrote.”
Banker Jaston Fernandes, 25, agreed. “I think my only concern is I don’t want it to tarnish the legacy of what it’s been,” he said. “I’ve not seen the Cursed Child because I think it’s perfect as it is. I don’t want to touch it.”
Fans were also quick to address the backlash faced by the casting of Essiedu as Snape. “[Essiedu] is not the problem – he’s a good actor in everything he does,” said Aurelia Jumeaucourt, a 30-year-old consultant from Paris. “The problem is people. As long as he’s a good actor, I don’t care what he looks like.”
“Sometimes the fandom can be quite toxic,” said Whitehill, who has left many of the social media groups she was once part of. “It’s really lovely when you meet the right people, but sometimes it can get very cultish.”
The series is expected to debut on Max and the HBO and Warner Bros Discovery streaming service in 2026, almost 30 years after the first book in Rowling’s bestselling series was published in 1997, and 15 years after the final film landed on screens.
