Mad Men and Chernobyl actor Jared Harris, son of original Dumbledore actor Richard Harris, has criticised HBO’s Harry Potter TV reboot.
Harris was asked by the Independent if he was interested in playing Dumbledore in the series, in a nod to his father’s starring role in the first two Harry Potter films before he died in 2002. “No thank you,” Harris said plainly.
He then expressed confusion at why the series — currently lacking a release date but already locked in for a 10-year run — was being made at all. “I mean, why do it?” Harris asked. “I don’t understand. The films were fantastic. Leave them alone.”
No casting for the reboot has been announced yet but HBO is searching for its Harry, Hermione, and Ron. 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.
The Harry Potter TV show will seemingly begin filming around spring 2025, however, so casting announcements will presumably come relatively soon.
Announced in April last year, the show will be a “faithful adaptation” of the novels and will run for several seasons. Succession producers Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod will direct and write the Harry Potter show, the latter of which also worked on Game of Thrones.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
