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HBO’s Harry Potter reboot has reignited conversations around the beloved franchise. Fresh off the release of its first trailer, many fans are asking one big question: Will any of the original cast return?
Officially, the new series is a clean slate. But as with any franchise relaunch, the shadow of the original remains – and the actors who helped build it are still being asked where they stand.
Credit: Warner Bros.
Who’s Leaving ‘Harry Potter’ Behind?
Daniel Radcliffe, who spent a decade playing Harry Potter, has been clear about his position. “I think it’s very much like they’re going for a new series. There would be somebody else playing Harry. So I think it would be very weird for me to show up,” he said.
Radcliffe has also requested that fans not compare his performance to that of his successor, Dominic McLaughlin. “I would like not to be weird spectral phantoms in these children’s lives and just to let them get on with it,” he said. “Because it is going to be a new thing and it’s going to be a different thing, and they’re going to be — I mean, I’m sure Dominic is going to be better than me and better than I was.” He also revealed that he sent the young actor a letter after learning of his identity (via ScreenRant).
Hermione Granger actress Emma Watson hasn’t issued a formal statement on the reboot, but her recent career choices suggest she’s unlikely to return. Her focus has shifted toward advocacy, fashion sustainability, and behind-the-scenes creative roles. In past interviews, she’s expressed caution about returning to major IP projects unless they align with her current values.
Credit: Warner Bros.
Most notably, she has clashed with JK Rowling in recent years. Like Radcliffe and Grint, she has openly shared differing opinions on transgender rights than the Harry Potter author. In a 2025 interview with podcaster Jay Shetty (via BBC), she claimed that she still loved Rowling and that “there’s just no world in which I could ever cancel her out, or cancel that out, for anything.”
However, she also said, “I just don’t know what else to do other than hold these two seemingly incompatible things together at the same time and just hope maybe they will one day resolve or co-join themselves, and maybe accept that they never will, but that they can both still be true.”
Rowling infamously went on to criticize Watson on X, formerly Twitter. Considering the fact that Rowling has an executive producer role in the Harry Potter reboot, the odds of Watson joining the lineup seem increasingly slim.
Many of the adult ensemble from the original films have either passed away, retired, or expressed interest in closing that chapter for good. For some, the time spent in the Wizarding World was meaningful—but final.
Credit: Warner Bros.
Who Might Revisit the Magic
That doesn’t mean the door is closed across the board. Rupert Grint has voiced openness to returning under the right conditions. “If the timing was right and everyone was coming back,” he said, he’d be interested in playing Ron Weasley again (via Evening Standard). “It was a character that was important to me, we kind of became the same person… I’m protective of him as well. It was my whole childhood.” Grint’s connection to Ron remains strong – but so does his caution about revisiting the role casually.
Tom Felton has also shown consistent enthusiasm for the franchise. Known for engaging with fans, writing about his experiences, and keeping close ties to the Harry Potter world, Felton has said he’d be open to a return – as proven by his recent reprisal of his Draco Malfoy role in the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. While he’s joked about potential cameo ideas, his tone suggests he’d take a real offer seriously.
Credit: Warner Bros.
These actors aren’t expecting to reprise their exact roles. But for fans hoping to see familiar faces – even briefly – Grint and Felton remain the most likely candidates.
That’s in addition to Warwick Davis, who is confirmed to return as Charms teacher and Ravenclaw head of house Professor Filius Flitwick. He also notably portrayed the goblin Griphook in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011), as well as providing the character’s voice in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001).
It’s currently unconfirmed whether he will reprise the role in the show’s first season, which is confirmed to be called Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
In this next chapter, most of the original actors are choosing not to look back. But a few haven’t ruled it out. And for a franchise built on memory, even a small return could carry a lot of weight.
Which Harry Potter actors would you like to see return?
