“Harry Potter”'s Matthew Lewis Reveals the Character He'd Like to Play in the TV Reboot — and It's Not Neville!
The actor and Jason Isaacs — who played Lucius Malfoy — weighed in on the new scripted series from Max during a panel at MegaCon
A Harry Potter reboot is in the works, and some familiar faces from the Wizarding World are weighing in on who they’d like to play if the opportunity ever presented itself.
During a Harry Potter panel at MegaCon in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday, two of the film series' original stars, Matthew Lewis and Jason Isaacs, shared their thoughts on the upcoming TV series.
“They’re making a TV show, for those people that didn’t know,” Isaacs, who played Lucius Malfoy, told the crowd after the moderator asked the question about returning to the Wizarding World one again.
The show will start “from the beginning of each book” and each of the seven books “will be a whole season,” he said. “But it hasn’t started — only ‘cause there was a strike for a long time.”
While Isaacs, 60, immediately joked that he’d play Dobby the house elf “because you don’t have to go to makeup,” joking that he could “just waltz in in the middle of the day, have a cup of coffee” and “steal the whole scene,” Lewis, 34, mused over the question for a while.
“Gosh, I have no idea. It’s very difficult as well because everyone just did such a wonderful job,” said Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom. He added, “I genuinely don’t think there’s anyone that I would want to even attempt to play.”
Related: Everything to Know About the New 'Harry Potter' TV Series
Isaacs — who recently joined the cast for season 3 of The White Lotus — prodded his former costar, jokingly asking Lewis, “Who was the worst? Who was the weakest actor?”
Lewis, however, continued pondering the original question, noting that he was “too old to play Neville again.” After deciding to base his answer “purely on when I read the books,” he revealed that Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and werewolf Remus Lupin would be his choice.
“The character I enjoyed was Professor Lupin,” he said, before paying tribute to “the incomparable David Thewlis,” who originated the role on-screen in the films. Though Thewlis, 60, “could never be beaten” for his portrayal of the werewolf, Lewis said, “If I was to have a go, that would be one that I’d do.”
Related: Gary Oldman Critiques His 'Mediocre' Performance as Sirius Black in Harry Potter Films
News of the TV show was announced in April 2023 during a Warner Bros. Discovery presentation. The “faithful adaptation” of the book series is expected to be rolled out over the next 10 years, with author J.K. Rowling serving as an executive producer.
Each season will "be authentic to the original books and bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world," according to a press release. The series will “dive deep into each of the iconic books,” Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO, HBO & Max Content, said.
Of the project, Rowling said in a statement, "Max's commitment to preserving the integrity of my books is important to me, and I'm looking forward to being part of this new adaptation which will allow for a degree of depth and detail only afforded by a long form television series.”
Following the news of the first-ever scripted series in the Wizarding World, Daniel Radcliffe weighed in on whether he’d ever return to the story that made him famous.
"My understanding is that they're trying to very much start fresh and I'm sure whoever is making them will want to make their own mark on it and probably not want to have to figure out how to get old Harry to cameo in this somewhere," Radcliffe, 33, told ComicBook.com in July.
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As for whether he'd actually want to appear, Radcliffe said, "I'm definitely not seeking it out in any way."
Though, that didn't stop the actor from wishing the new ensemble of stars “all the luck in the world.” He added, “I'm very excited to have that torch passed. But I don't think it needs me to physically pass it."
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