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Casting rumors for the Harry Potter TV reboot have been heating up over the past few months, with plenty of names for Snape and Dumbledore in the mix. The franchise's main villain is now getting some of the limelight with one name consistently being linked with the big bad: Cillian Murphy.
The fan-casting has already got the approval of original Voldemort star Ralph Fiennes, and now it seems Harry Potter director Chris Columbus is also on board. The filmmaker, who directed the first two Harry Potter movies – The Philosopher's Stone and The Chamber of Secrets – shared his thoughts on Oscar-winning Murphy to Entertainment Weekly. "Well, Cillian is one of my favorite actors, so that would be amazing," he told the publication.
He also shared his thoughts on the project as a whole, opening up about why he thinks the HBO reboot is a good idea. Columbus said it was "a spectacular idea, because there's a certain restriction when you're making a film." He explained: "The fact that they have the leisure of [multiple] episodes for each book, I think that's fantastic. You can get all the stuff in the series that we didn't have an opportunity to do...all these great scenes that we just couldn't put in the films."
No official casting has been made for the Harry Potter series, but an open casting call for the young leads was put out in 2024. Bridge of Spies star Mark Rylance has also been linked with the role of Albus Dumbledore while Black Mirror star Paapa Essiedu had reportedly been offered the role of Severus Snape.
For more from HBO, check out our guides to the best shows on Max and the best movies on Max to watch right now.
It is important to note that the upcoming HBO Harry Potter series has been the subject of criticism and debate due to the show's executive producer and author J.K. Rowling's very public and harmful stance on gender identity. It was a similar situation with the Hogwarts Legacy launch. For more, read more about the Hogwarts Legacy controversy.
