Latest news with #childactors
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Lights, camera, fractions: how Harry Potter TV actors will juggle Hogwarts with real lessons
Harry Potter may have been overjoyed at going to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, but the children playing Harry, Ron and Hermione in the forthcoming HBO TV series will vanish from their own schools for the rest of their childhoods. Instead the child actors – along with those playing Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley and the other Hogwarts pupils – will get much of their education from tutors at a 'mini-school' to be conjured up at Warner Brothers' Leavesden studio in Watford, north of London, when filming starts later this year. With HBO's chief executive, Casey Bloys, saying the project will run for '10 consecutive years', the child actors now aged between nine and 11 will spend their teens fitting lessons and exam revision around learning lines and sitting in makeup trucks. Jo Austin, of Tayberry Tuition, which has supplied specialist on-set tutors for Netflix and BBC productions, said: 'This Harry Potter series is fairly unique in that it is child-based. The children are the stars and they are going to be on screen all the time. 'I can't imagine many days filming when you haven't got any children on set, so I think they are going to be in there most of the time and working very hard. They will be out of school for a period of six to nine months to film and complete each series.' Nathaniel McCullagh, a co-founder of Simply Learning Tuition, who has worked on both sides of the camera as a tutor and a director, predicted: 'They'll probably have a school at Leavesden that is essentially a series of classrooms with subject tutors, and they'll wheel the children in and out of class just like a mini-school. 'When you start building that level of establishment you'll need management – a head teacher, a director of studies, individual tutors. It's far more complex than a typical on-set tutor who is tasked with looking after a couple of kids for a few hours each day for a month. 'I don't know who is going to get the gig, but it's a wonderful opportunity to look after maybe 30 children for months at a time and maybe longer ... They have got those children for 10 years or thereabouts, and they'll be responsible for their entire education.' Judith Phillips, who worked as a tutor on the original Harry Potter films, has previously told the Guardian that the aim is for children to get at least 15 hours of teaching a week, with tutors on call from 8am. For crowd scenes such as Quidditch matches, up to 400 children could be involved. 'Time is money on the film set, so when you get a knock on the door saying they need your pupil on set, it's not a case of finishing up what you're working on – it's put your pen down and go,' Phillips said. Austin said the child actors she worked with were usually eager to be tutored. 'The students we meet are very hard-working in general, I've yet to meet one who is a precocious brat. There are long, very boring days on film sets. Maybe in Hollywood it might be different, but we've worked with a wide range of child actors and we've never had an issue with any of the students.' McCullagh said chaperones played a vital role in managing children's workload and making sure productions stick to the legal time limits on work, which vary with age. Sign up to The Guide Get our weekly pop culture email, free in your inbox every Friday after newsletter promotion 'The problem with being on a film set is that there's never enough time,' he said. 'It doesn't matter how much money you've got behind the film; things go wrong. The lighting changes, the actors don't quite pull off the performance they need or the director wants something different. So there's always the temptation to say to a child: 'Can you just do another take?' That's when the chaperone has to step in and say: 'No'. 'If children are on set being filmed two hours a day, they'll be in makeup and wardrobe for another two hours,' McCullagh added. 'They'll be transported from wherever they are staying, but as soon as they get in the car or step into makeup, the clock starts ticking. It's an enormous race against time to try and get them in front of the camera and do some acting.' Charles Bonas, the founder of Bonas MacFarlane education consultancy, worked with some of the child actors on the original Harry Potter films. He said that while those playing the major roles had 'basically hit the jackpot', they were still having to give things up – as were those with smaller but still time-consuming parts. 'There's a wide point to make about what is in the best interest of the child,' Bonas said. 'With these kids, like it or not, their academic education is going to take a back seat. And if you said that to almost anyone else they'd ask: 'Is it worth it?' 'There's a lot of childhood they'll miss out on because they are sitting in these studios all day working with adults.'
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Three unknown British children taking over lead Harry Potter roles in TV reboot set to become overnight multi-millionaires
Three currently unknown British children are set to become overnight multi-millionaires when they are announced as the new stars of the Harry Potter TV series. The new child stars, who will be 11-years-old and have been picked from more than 32,000 audition tapes from across the UK and Ireland, will take on the lead characters Harry, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley in the TV reboot. The lucky three children, who Warner Bros have teased will be announced any day now, are set to start filming this summer. The trio will join A-listers John Lithgow, 79, as Albus Dumbledore, Paul Whitehouse, 67, as Argus Filch, and Nick Frost, 53, as Rubeus Hagrid as they film at Warner Bros's 200-acre studio in Leavesden Herts. JK Rowling 's seven hit books which were originally made into films starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint will now be made into seven seasons. The HBO TV show is said to be costing £75million an episode and the three child actors could land themselves even bigger fortunes than the original stars. Entertainment writer James Hibberd told The Sun: 'While the confirmed adult actors are pros, casting kids is always a gamble and their chemistry is key to the story's charm.' Hollywood finance expert Martin Cobb added: 'There's absolutely no reason to suppose they won't easily exceed the incomes of the three original stars.' The original three stars, who were just 11-years-old when they found fame, are now worth a staggering amount. Danial, now 35, has an estimated net worth of £82.5million, while Emma, 35, bagged £64million and Rupert, 36, earned £37.5million. A senior production source told the publication: 'The hope is that this becomes the most lucrative TV series of all time. But that hinges on how two young boys and a girl manage to bond — as well as coping with instant fame.' The new series aims to 'lead a new generation of fandom' and hopes to recapture the beloved details Harry Potter fans have enjoyed for 25 years. It could have been a touching full circle moment that would have seen Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson reunite as part of the franchise for the first time since the release of Deathly Hallows Part 2 in 2011. The reason many of the roles have been re-cast is because the original stars such as Robbie Coltrane, Richard Harris, Dame Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman have passed away. There is nothing to say that the reboot needs to have an entirely new set of actors. But it has become increasingly apparent that the chance of a reunion or any sort of cameo seems less than likely, given their very public feud with JK Rowling who is executive producer on the HBO series. Only last month, she appeared to take aim at the three stars who owe her their careers when she replied to a tweet asking: 'What actor/actress instantly ruins a movie for you?' Without missing a beat, Rowling cryptically wrote: 'Three guesses. Sorry, but that was irresistible.' The author's relationship has deteriorated with the original cast following her remarks about the trans community in 2020, in which she said she believed women were defined by their biological sex and not their gender identity. She strongly denies that she is transphobic. Daniel confirmed he and Rowling no longer speak after the writer insisted she would never forgive the younger stars of the film franchise for speaking out against her views on trans rights. Meanwhile Emma and Rupert have also taken a strong stance against her. Daniel's career has appeared to slow down in the last few years. After his famous breakout role, Daniel went on to star in films like The Woman in Black, Kill Your Darlings, Victor Frankenstein and The Lost City alongside Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. He also received greater critical acclaim, bagging his first Emmy nomination for playing the titular role in 2022 biopic Weird: The Al Yankovic Story and winning a Tony Award for his performance as Charley Kringas in 1981 Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along. However instead of acting, Daniel appears to just be working on voiceovers, as his most recent work sees him voice King Jeremy in cartoon series Mulligan. After main roles starring in The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, the live action version of Beauty And The Beast and Little Women, Emma took a step back from acting. The star left the limelight to embark on a Masters in Creative Writing at Oxford University. Meanwhile Rupert has even admitted he was close to leaving acting all together after the birth of his daughter in 2021. He confessed he had never felt 'comfortable' with being famous and considered turning his hand to another trade.
The Sun
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Three unknown Brit actors taking over lead Harry Potter characters in TV reboot set to become overnight multi-millionaires
THREE unknown British child actors are poised to become overnight multi-millionaires when they are named the stars of the Harry Potter series. They will become 11-year-old lead characters Harry, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley in the TV reboot. Warner Bros said the names of the three lucky children, picked from more than 32,000 wannabes who sent in audition tapes from across the UK and Ireland, would be announced imminently. The trio will start filming in summer at the company's 200-acre studio in Leavesden, Herts, alongside A-listers John Lithgow, 79, as Albus Dumbledore, Paul Whitehouse, 67, as Argus Filch, and Nick Frost, 53, as Rubeus Hagrid. Each of JK Rowling 's seven books will be made into a series of six episodes. It is said to costing £75million an episode. The three child actors could land themselves even bigger fortunes than Potter movie stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. Entertainment writer James Hibberd told The Sun: 'While the confirmed adult actors are pros, casting kids is always a gamble and their chemistry is key to the story's charm.' Hollywood finance expert Martin Cobb added: 'There's absolutely no reason to suppose they won't easily exceed the incomes of the three original stars.' Original Harry actor Daniel, 35, has an estimated net worth of £82.5million, while Emma, 35, bagged £64million and Rupert, 36, earned £37.5million. A senior production source said: 'The hope is that this becomes the most lucrative TV series of all time. 'But that hinges on how two young boys and a girl manage to bond — as well as coping with instant fame.' The first series is expected to be shown next year on HBO. 1
