HBO's Harry Potter TV Series May Have Found Its Dumbledore In A Beloved American Actor
The "Harry Potter" TV series still needs to cast most of its major characters, but news just broke that Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor John Lithgow is circling the role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
This was exclusively reported by Deadline, although HBO — the network behind this upcoming series based on the hit novels by Joanne Kathleen Rowling, aka "J.K. Rowling," as well as the massively successful film franchise — did give the outlet a terse, non-committal statement. "We appreciate that such a high-profile series will draw a lot of rumor and speculation," HBO said. "As we make our way through pre-production, we will only confirm details as we finalize deals."
If Lithgow does end up playing the mysterious, wry, and extraordinarily brilliant Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore — a legendary wizard who once defended the magical world against the evil wizard Grindelwald — he'll be in good company. Richard Harris originated the role in the first two "Harry Potter" films before he passed away in 2002, at which point Michael Gambon (who died in 2023) took up the mantle as the irreverent wizard. In the "Fantastic Beasts" prequel movies, Jude Law plays a younger version of Albus Dumbledore, although the larger "Fantastic Beasts" saga may or may not even be alive and well at this point.
Regardless, Lithgow would join an elite and talented group of performers who have played Dumbledore before, but there would be one enormous difference: Lithgow would be the first American actor to play the famously British character.
John Lithgow would be the first American to play Albus Dumbledore — but he's played a famous Brit before
When the original "Harry Potter" films started production, Joanne Kathleen Rowling insisted — at the time — that the films be "100% British," according to outlets like The Telegraph. With that in mind, it's a little surprising that a famously American actor like John Lithgow is in the running to play the definitively British character Albus Dumbledore, much less actively in talks for the role. So, either Rowling has relaxed her stance on the Britishness of it all or the British casting pool isn't wide enough for Rowling, the show's executive producer Mark Mylod, and showrunner Francesca Gardiner.
Still, if you missed Lithgow's (pretty famous) performance as a famous Brit, rest assured that he can trick pretty much anyone into thinking he hails from across the pond. During the first season of Netflix's monarchy chronicle "The Crown," which aired back in 2016, Lithgow portrayed Winston freakin' Churchill, one of the most famous and beloved British prime ministers in the history of the United Kingdom; he reprised the role in a supporting capacity for the second and third seasons (alongside Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth II in the first two seasons and Olivia Colman in the third). Lithgow was, honestly, great as Churchill, so he's perfectly capable of playing Dumbledore. In fact, he would be a great choice for the role; he's incredibly talented! Still, whether or not he's signing onto this project is uncertain right this second.
The Harry Potter TV series is set to take place over a full decade and adapt all seven books to the small screen
If John Lithgow does end up playing Albus Dumbledore, he's got quite a lengthy journey ahead of him. The "Harry Potter" TV series on HBO is set to run for an entire decade and seven seasons, each one of which will cover one of the franchise's massive novels. (Well, the first few aren't that long, but the page counts really start to creep up starting with the fourth book, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.") No other official casting news has been revealed as of this writing, but Paapa Essiedu was allegedly in talks to play Hogwarts' Potion master Severus Snape (a role originated by the late, great Alan Rickman), and /Film happens to have some pretty good ideas about actors who could possibly take over for Ralph Fiennes and play the Dark Lord Voldemort.
That said, it's hard to discuss the "Harry Potter" TV series — and potential casting news — without touching on the elephant in the room. Since 2020, Joanne Kathleen Rowling — who, again, prefers to style herself as "J.K. Rowling" — has espoused some genuinely upsetting views about transgender women, making it clear that she does not support the transgender community while alleging that she simply stands for women's rights. Any actor who signs onto this project will, undoubtedly, be asked about Rowling's views; stars from the original films, including the first-ever Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe, have shared their feelings as Rowling continues sharing hers. The reason that high-profile actors aren't flocking to this project could come down to the fact that actors don't want to be besieged with questions about the views of the woman who created the entire intellectual property, but that is, it should be said, conjecture on my part.
Still, it's worth mentioning that the legacy of "Harry Potter" is a tricky thing these days, and it's something potential cast members might consider. Maybe, just maybe, that's why an American is in talks to play Albus Dumbledore for the very first time.
The original "Harry Potter" movies, for now, are streaming on Peacock.