HBO has released the first behind-the-scenes images of Dominic West and Nick Frost as Harry Potter and Rubeus Hagrid for the upcoming Harry Potter series, as filming officially begins.
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HBO has unveiled the first behind-the-scenes images of Dominic West and Nick Frost in their roles as Harry Potter and Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter series, as filming commences at Warner Bros. Leavesden Studios in the UK. West is replacing Daniel Radcliffe, who appeared in the cinematic adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s fantasy novels for about a decade.
It was previously announced that the actor from Shaun of the Dead would play Rubeus Hagrid, replacing the late Robbie Coltrane.
HBO has introduced several other cast members for the series, including Rory Wilmott as Neville Longbottom, Amos Kitson as Dudley Dursley, Louise Brealey as Madam Rolanda Hooch, and Anton Lesser as Garrick Ollivander.
It was previously announced that Dominic West, Arabella Stanton, and Alastair Stout would play the roles of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley, respectively, succeeding Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint. Olivier Award-winning actor John Lithgow will play Albus Dumbledore, Oscar-nominated actress Janet McTeer will play Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu from the series I May Destroy You will play Severus Snape, and Nick Frost from Shaun of the Dead will play Rubeus Hagrid. In addition to these four actors, theater actor Luke Thallon from Hamlet will be seen as Quirinus Quirrell, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in the first season. Five-time BAFTA Award-winning actor Paul Whitehouse will play Argus Filch, the caretaker of Hogwarts School. Rory Wilmott will play Neville Longbottom, Amos Kitson as Dudley Dursley, Louise Brealey as Madam Rolanda Hooch, and Anton Lesser as Garrick Ollivander.
HBO has announced that Adriano Goldman will be the cinematographer, Kate Hall the makeup artist, Paul Herbert the stunt coordinator, Mark Holt the sound effects supervisor, Mara LePere-Schloop the production designer, Naomi Moore the set decorator, Alexis Waisbrod the visual effects supervisor, Dom Sidoli the visual effects producer, and Holly Waddington the costume designer for the project.
Francesca Gardiner is the writer and showrunner, and Mark Mylod is the director and executive producer for the project. Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and Max, stated when introducing the project that the series would be a “faithful adaptation” and produced under the supervision of J.K. Rowling.
Frost is best known for his collaborations with Simon Pegg, including the films Shaun of the Dead and The World’s End, and Amazon’s series Truth Seekers. He was recently seen in the live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon.
He told Collider that he “would never” imitate Coltrane: “I’m trying to do a performance, not a ‘different’ performance. I think you have to treat the source material with respect, but there’s room to go into detail. I always saw Hagrid as a lovely, lost, fierce, funny, and warm child. I think the beauty of making a series based on a book is that we can delve into so much more, and I’m very excited.”
The series is set to stream on HBO Max in 2027.
