Harry Potter Fans Are Losing It at the First Footage of a Beloved Original Star’s Return

While HBO is developing a Harry Potter remake, the original films – and their stars – remain beloved. It’s the Harry Potter movies that have truly turned the franchise into a global empire: it’s what the theme parks and studio tours take from, and what drives the multiple “wizarding shops” (official or otherwise) that can be found around the world. For some, Daniel Radcliffe will always be Harry, and that goes for a lot of the other cast members and characters too, but only one has actually returned to the role over a decade later.

Tom Felton, who portrayed Draco Malfoy across all eight movies, is back in the Wizarding World as part of the Broadway cast of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. While it was announced a few months ago, he finally made his second debut as Draco this week, and prompted a prolonged, rapturous applause from the crowd at the Lyric Theater in New York, before eventually delivering his first line as Malfoy in 14 years, telling Harry Potter: “I need a favor.” The reception just further highlights how beloved the movies and their actors remain, invoking a strong sense of nostalgia among the crowd.

Will Other Original Harry Potter Actors Return?

Felton’s return is the biggest so far of any Harry Potter actor, though he’s not the only one to return to the franchise in some capacity. James and Oliver Phelps, who played Fred and George Weasley, host the TV show Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking. Meanwhile, Warwick Davies, who played both Griphook and Professor Flitwick in the films, will be reprising the latter role for HBO’s upcoming remake, though so far is the only actor to be coming back for it.

Given the response to Felton in The Cursed Child, it wouldn’t be a major surprise to see some others return for a brief Broadway run, but we can probably rule out any of the big three – Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson – doing so. While each of them will forever be tied to the franchise, they’ve also seemingly moved on and want to take on different parts (Radcliffe previously said he wouldn’t return for the Harry Potter remake), so it’d be a major shock if they were to come back for a Broadway run.

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Of course, if WB were to make a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie, that might be a different matter. The nostalgia factor would make that about as guaranteed a hit as you could get, though it’s unlikely to happen with the focus now on the TV show. But if there’s one thing that’s certain in the world of franchises and IPs, never say never.

Tom Felton is appearing in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway until May 10th, 2026. The Harry Potter movies are available to stream on HBO Max.

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