New HBO Harry Potter series casts Hermione, Ron and Harry
The new HBO Harry Potter series has found their Harry, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley.
A casting call, announced in September, saw around 32,000 children audition for the lead roles, with the team reviewing up to 1,000 tapes per day, according to HBO.
Dominic McLaughlin will play Harry, Arabella Stanton will be Hermione, and Alastair Stout will portray Ron, the TV company and Warner Bros said.
The three children are 'newcomers', according to HBO, while Arabella's agent says in her acting CV that she is based in London and has been in musical productions including Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express and the Royal Shakespeare Company's Matilda The Musical.
Alastair's agent has listed him as appearing in Albert Bartlett's Jersey Royal potato advertising campaign and having a 'northern' accent.
Each season of the show will be a faithful adaptation of the books, from author and executive producer JK Rowling.
The novels had already been made into movies with Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint playing the trio.
Rupert Grint, Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe, stars of the original movies (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
Executive producers Francesca Gardiner and Mark Mylod said: 'After an extraordinary search led by casting directors Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, we are delighted to announce we have found our Harry, Hermione, and Ron.
'The talent of these three unique actors is wonderful to behold, and we cannot wait for the world to witness their magic together onscreen.
'We would like to thank all the tens of thousands of children who auditioned. It's been a real pleasure to discover the plethora of young talent out there.'
It was previously stipulated that the three young child actors must be residents of the UK or Ireland, and aged between nine and 11 on April 2025.
Daniel Radcliffe (centre) with co-stars Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) and Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) when they were cast more than two decades ago (PA)
Several other roles have already been cast for the upcoming show, including British actors Nick Frost and Paapa Essiedu and US star John Lithgow as the friendly groundskeeper Rubeus Hagrid, cruel Professor Severus Snape, and Hogwarts headmaster Professor Albus Dumbledore, respectively.
Also joining is Ozark actor Janet McTeer as Professor Minerva McGonagall, British stage actor Luke Thallon as the first book's main antagonist Quirinus Quirrell, and Welsh comedian and actor Paul Whitehouse as the magic-less Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry caretaker Argus Filch.
The eight movies had seen Dumbledore portrayed by Irish actors Richard Harris and Michael Gambon, while Snape was played by Alan Rickman, Robbie Coltrane played Hagrid, and Maggie Smith played McGonagall.
Production will begin at Warner Bros Studios Leavesden in summer 2025.
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