Voldemort actor Ralph Fiennes wants Oppenheimer star Cillian Murphy to play the iconic villain in the HBO reboot series of Harry Potter.
As reported by Deadline, Fiennes responded to a viewer on Watch What Happen’s Live who suggested Murphy should play the Harry Potter villain in the series. “That’s a wonderful suggestion,” he said. “I’d be all in favor of Cillian, yeah.”
Whether or not Murphy is open to the role remains to be seen, as HBO is yet to reveal any of its casting for the upcoming series. It’s already committed to a 10 year run of the show, however, so any actors who do join will be in for the long haul.
Announced in April last year, the Harry Potter show will be a “faithful adaptation” of the novels which looks to tell a more “in depth” story than can be told in a two hour film. Succession producers Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod will direct and write it, the latter of which also worked on Game of Thrones.
HBO is currently searching for its Harry, Hermione, and Ron, and as for who might play Dumbledore, original Sirius Black actor Gary Oldman joked he’s about the right age to play the Hogwarts headmaster after debuting in The Prisoner of Azkaban 20 years ago.
Actor and playwright Mark Rylance is reportedly “at the top of the casting wishlist” for the Hogwarts headmaster role, however, sticking to the focus on British actors. This is perhaps unsurprising given controversial original author J.K. Rowling is “fairly involved” in casting.
The Harry Potter TV show will seemingly begin filming around spring 2025, with HBO targeting a 2026 release window.
Image Credit: Arturo Holmes / Getty Images
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
