The Harry Potter TV remake is a chance to do things differently, and that means including several book characters the Harry Potter movies didn’t use. The new adaptation has a lot to live up to, with an entire movie franchise that only ended 14 years ago, made billions of dollars, and remains so beloved all over the world that it fuels a merchandise, theme park, and tourism empire. But this is HBO, so there’s reason for optimism, and there’s plenty to adapt from the source material that the movies, more limited in scope and runtime than a TV series, didn’t use, to give it a competitive edge.
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It does remain to be seen just how different from the Harry Potter movies the remake is, as thus far, things look rather mixed on that front. It has some similar costumes and design, and it’s even bringing back movie actor Warwick Davis to play Professor Flitwick once again. At the same time, some of the castings are a departure from the films, with several of the adult actors much younger than their movie counterparts.
There are also some characters who’ll be new to the screen, having missed out first time around. The movies removed a lot of characters, and there is hope they’ll all be featured, from Ludo Bagman to Frank and Alice Longbottom to the Gaunts. A few characters who weren’t in the movies have already been confirmed, and that’s an encouraging sign for where things are headed.
3) Charlie Weasley
When the other Weasley kids were cast for Harry Potter’s remake, the caption from HBO Max on Instagram included a tease of their older brother: “Charlie’s in Romania at the moment but will be joining us soon enough.” That seems like a pretty clear statement of intent that the character will be included in the show. Although it does overlook Bill, that’s presumably because he was in the movies (and is too important to the story later on to leave out, given his and Fleur Delacour’s wedding and cottage are key parts of The Deathly Hallows). Mentioning Charlie feels more like a way of reassuring us that he isn’t being cut again.
That’s great, because Charlie is one of Harry Potter’s coolest characters. He works training dragons, he was Gryffindor’s Quidditch captain, and he proves himself to be extremely brave and loyal, with the same sense of humor as (most of) his brothers to boot. Charlie hasn’t been cast yet, but will be mentioned in Season 1 if it follows the books, as he’s involved in the plot to smuggle Hagrid’s dragon, Norbert, out of Hogwarts. It may not be until Season 4 that we get to see him, as he attends the Quidditch World Cup with his family and joins the fight against the Death Eaters who interrupt the celebrations.
2) Professor Binns
Professor Cuthbert Binns is such a part of the furniture at Hogwarts, having taught there since at least the 1800s, that not even his death could remove him from his post teaching History of Magic. The only thing that could, apparently, was Harry Potter being adapted for the big screen, as the movies decided to throw the character and his subject in the trash. With runtime at a premium and money to be spent wisely, it was decided that a ghost teaching a lesson so boring it sends the kids to sleep wasn’t a priority.
HBO has seen the error with that line of thinking, and has confirmed Professor Binns will be in the Harry Potter TV show. He’ll be played by actor Richard Durden, a British actor who has had small roles in everything from Batman (1989) to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. With the casting made official alongside several other familiar Hogwarts professors, we can expect Binns to play a small role in Season 1 of the remake.
1) Peeves
As with Charlie, there hasn’t been any official casting for Peeves the Poltergeist. Unlike Charlie, however, the character should be appearing in Season 1 of the remake if it’s staying as true to the books as it seems. The character pops up at a few different points in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, usually just to make a joke or cause some extra chaos. They’re small moments, but shouldn’t be considered expendable. The character adds a lot of fun and levity, and is an important part of making Hogwarts feel like a place that exists even without Harry himself.
Thankfully, the creative team already knows this, as director Mark Mylod and showrunner Francesca Gardiner told HarryPotter.com: “We’ll get to have some fun with Peeves in the corridors!” Unless things have since changed, that should guarantee we’re going to see him at some point on the show. The biggest challenge with Peeves in Harry Potter’s remake is casting him: the movies infamously cut the character’s scenes, where he was played by British comedy legend Rik Mayall. That won’t be easy to equal, but fingers crossed, they’ll have something up their sleeves.
Harry Potter’s remake is currently in production and is expected to air on HBO and HBO Max in 2027.
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Image courtesy of Focus Features.
