Harry Potter HBO cast: Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton and Alastair Stout cast as Harry, Hermione and Ron

West Australian

6 days ago

It may seem like yesterday when Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson joined the world of Harry Potter on screen but those guys are now in their mid-30s and with kids of their own.
So, yes, for anyone who thinks it's 'too soon' for a new iteration of Harry Potter, it's only because we're all in denial that it's been a quarter of a century since we first heard John Williams' theme song.
The next generation is here with the roles of the core trio finally cast for the upcoming Harry Potter TV show.
Warner Bros announced overnight Dominic McLaughlin will play Harry, Arabella Stanton will take on the role of Hermione and Alastair Stout will portray Ron.
The three are relative newcomers although Stanton has played the lead role of Matilda on the West End, and McLaughlin has been in an Edinburgh stage production of Macbeth alongside Ralph Fiennes and Indira Varma, and is slated to appear in British TV movie Grow and BBC series Gifted.
The child actors won the coveted roles after an open casting call saw 32,000 kids apply.
The Harry Potter TV series is expected to start production imminently with the first season pencilled in for 2026. It will run for seven seasons, one instalment for each book and could take 10 years to complete.
Last month, the studio made a swath of casting announcements for some of the adult roles in the show — John Lithgow as Professor Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Professor McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Professor Snape, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, Luke Thallon as Quirrell and Paul Whitehouse as Filch.
The show is being overseen by writer Francesca Gardiner and director Mark Mylod. Both are Brits and have a long history with HBO, who has commissioned the series.
In Australia, Harry Potter will be available to stream on Max, the streaming platform which will soon be re-branded as HBO Max.
The Harry Potter books have sold 600 million copies and spawned a franchise including eight films in the original run, three spin-off movies, theme parks, a stage production, and a studio backlot tour just outside of London.
J.K. Rowling wrote the novels but has become a controversial public figure due to her support for anti-trans movements.
Earlier this month, Essiedu signed an open letter, along with 1500 actors and artists in the UK screen industry in support of trans rights after the UK Supreme Court ruled that 'woman' and 'sex' in the Equality Act referred exclusively to biological definitions. Rowling partly financed the court challenge that led to the ruling, and gloated on social media after the victory.
Rowling posted on social media that she doesn't have the power to fire Essiedu from the upcoming series, and wouldn't even if she could.
Other actors in the Harry Potter universe who signed the letter include Eddie Redmayne, who starred in the three Fantastic Beasts films, and Katie Leung, who played Cho Chang in the Harry Potter movies.
Radcliffe, Watson and Grint have all previously come out in support of trans rights.
After the UK court ruling, Irish Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan lashed out at Rowling for her anti-trans stance. She posted, 'Keep your new Harry Potter, lads. Wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole.'