Ralph Fiennes, the actor who iconically played Voldemort in the Harry Potter films, has weighed in on the rumours that Cillian Murphy could be playing the bald menace in the upcoming series.
If you haven’t seen the rumours and happen to be wondering, people want Murphy to spend his next eight to ten years beefing a child and play one of the most recognisable villains in film and TV history.
Warner Bros. announced that they would be retelling the story of Harry Potter via HBO, confirming that the channel that produced Succession would be undertaking the project.
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In a statement released last year, Warner Bros. said: “The series will be a faithful adaptation of the beloved Harry Potter book series by author and executive producer J.K. Rowling.
“The series will feature a new cast to lead a new generation of fandom, full of the fantastic detail and much-loved characters Harry Potter fans have loved for over twenty-five years.
“Each season will bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world, while the original, classic and cherished films will remain at the core of the franchise and available to watch globally.”
It is widely expected for the three main actors to be unknown quantities, with any household names moreso expected of the adult characters, as happened with the films.
Murphy is about as big a name you can expect from the Harry Potter series.
Already a household name for his outstanding turn as Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders, he was catapulted into stardom by his Oscar-winning performance as J. Robert Oppenheimer.
The Irishman has long shown he has extreme flexibility in who he can play, and Fiennes has now endorsed the possibility of him taking on the role of Voldemort.
Per Variety, Fiennes spoke about the possibility on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live.
He said: “Cillian is a fantastic actor. That’s a wonderful suggestion. I would be all in favour of Cillian. Yeah.”
Fiennes may be competing with Murphy himself, as he told Variety he would without a doubt be up for taking on the role again, saying there was ‘no question about it’.
No casting information is currently available, bar the fact that Variety reported Warner Bros. had sounded out Oscar-winner Mark Rylance to play Dumbledore.
While it is impossible to rule out at such an early stage, the likelihood of a familiar face returning to Hogwarts seems low.
Daniel Radcliffe spoke about a possible return to the show and, while he didn’t reject the idea entirely, he hinted the show was looking to go in a different direction.
He said: “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.
“So, I'm definitely not seeking it out in any way. But I do wish them, obviously, all the luck in the world and I'm very excited to have that torch passed.
“But I don't think it needs me to physically pass it”.
He also told E! News when asked about returning for the show: “I don't think so, I think they very wisely want to [have] a clean break. And I don't know if it would work to have us do anything in it.”
LADbible group have contacted reps for Cillian Murphy for comment.
Topics: Harry Potter, Cillian Murphy, HBO, TV, TV and Film, Film
Michael Slavin