Photo credit: Corey Nickols (The Telegraph)
American actor John Lithgow has been cast as Albus Dumbledore in the HBO+/Bronte Studios adaptations of the Harry Potter novels. Despite rumors of other cast decisions being made, Lithgow is the first central character actor whose contract to play the part has been confirmed. Three notes about this news!
(1) Three Things to Read: The Screen Rant exclusive story that first broke the news, ‘John Lithgow Confirms Casting As Dumbledore In HBO’s Harry Potter: “This Is Going To Define The Last Chapter Of My Life”,’ Lithgow’s Wikipedia page which details his history as an actor on stage, screen, and television, as well as his personal life, and a Telegraph profile of Lithgow from 2014, ‘John Lithgow: “I just can’t say no”.’ From the Screen Rant article:
In an interview with ScreenRant‘s Liam Crowley today to promote his new project, The Rule of Jenny Penn, Lithgow now officially confirms that he has been cast as the Hogwarts Headmaster in HBO’s Harry Potter TV show. Though the actor, who is 79, doesn’t spill any details about the series, he does admit that the decision to accept was challenging because of the immense time commitment at this stage of his career. Check out Lithgow’s comment below:
Well, it came as a total surprise to me. I just got the phone call up at the Sundance Film Festival for yet another film, and it was not an easy decision because it’s going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I’m afraid. But I’m very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to Harry Potter. That’s why it’s been such a hard decision. I’ll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I’ve said yes.
With Lithgow having now broken the seal, so to speak, it’s possible that more casting announcements will follow in the weeks ahead. So far, it’s been reported that Paapa Essiedu has been eyed to play Severus Snape in the show, and confirmation on this could arrive in the near future. Who will play the main trio of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley has so far remained a mystery, but the show reportedly put out a wide casting call for the young characters, meaning the actors chosen may not be recognizable names. [Emphasis in original]
(2) Is Lithgow Equal to the Dumbledore Role?
- Well, he’s old enough in his eightieth year to pull it off certainly.
- He’s played the lead in King Lear which was a triumph so he has the acting chops.
- He may be a bit taller at 6’3″ than I’d have guessed as optimal for the Headmaster, but it sure beats his being too short.
- He is an American but has acted on the English stage since his Fullbright scholarship at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
- He’s straight or “heteronormative,” and has won acclaim for his portrayal of the transgender football player Roberta Muldoon in The World According to Garp (1982) and of a married same-sex attracted man in Love is Strange (2014).
Two Tony awards, two Emmy awards, and two Oscar nominations with comedy, tragedy, and nuanced drama throughout his Playbill entry — if resumes could talk, this one would shout, “Hire him already!”
(3) Why Did They Start with John ‘Albus’ Lithgow?
My guess about why the HBO+/Bronte Studios started the roll-out of actors and actresses confirmed to be playing parts in the bally-hooed production to adapt the Hogwarts Saga for television is because the usual suspects will have nothing to complain about. Fandom had been assured there would be no Woke ‘Black Hermione’ drama; casting would conform to the published texts. And then ‘Black Severus’ went viral, Paapa Esssiedu as the Potions Master, and even though it was (and remains) an unconfirmed rumor. Harry Potter fandom, still in its Transgender Twist and Cancellation Reflex Mode, threw a fit, for and against the choice, mostly against (see the comment threads at my posts The Casting Genius of ‘Black Severus:’ Paapa Essiedu Chosen as New Snape and ‘Black Severus’ versus ‘Black Hermione:’ Similarities and Differences in Casting).
Any publicity is good publicity, supposedly, but the target audience is both exhausted by controversy and exhausting on everybody in that orbit. Yes, I loved the rumor that Mark Rylance was going to be tapped as the new Dumbledore (Black Snape, White Dumbledore? HBO+ Reaches Out to Mark Rylance for Albus); I did, however, express skepticism about the possibility that a stage actor of his skills would surrender the last ten years of his working life to a teevee show. John Lithgow is not an actor with the near future projects and possibilities that Rylance has and he has taken the plunge. Three cheers.
And a huzzah that his being selected will be met with a yawn by Potter Purists and TRA Twitter Titans alike. The series is supposed to start shooting its Philosopher’s Stone adaptations this summer for a late 2026, early 2027 release. The less drama at the start of this thespian marathon, the more likely it is we’ll all make it to the finish line together and can meet future announcements with keen anticipation rather than dread.
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