“The Great” alum Nicholas Hoult has lined up another great role: He’ll play Gilderoy Lockhart in Season 2 of HBO’s “Harry Potter” series, TVLine has confirmed. (Deadline first reported the news.)
Gilderoy Lockhart is a pompous wizard and professor at Hogwarts; he was played by Kenneth Branagh in the second “Harry Potter” movie, 2002’s “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.” Each season of the HBO show is expected to cover one book in author J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” series. HBO renewed its “Harry Potter” series for Season 2 in May, with the eight-episode Season 1 — titled “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” — set to debut this Christmas.
Hoult starred opposite Elle Fanning in the Hulu historical comedy “The Great,” playing Russian emperor Peter; the role earned him an Emmy nomination for best lead actor in a comedy series in 2022. He also played Tony in the first two seasons of the U.K. teen drama “Skins.” On the big screen, he played villain Lex Luthor in last year’s comic-book blockbuster “Superman.” His other film roles include “Nosferatu,” “The Menu,” “X-Men: First Class,” and “Mad Max: Fury Road.”
HBO’s Harry Potter series was first announced in 2023
HBO has been hard at work for years now turning the massive popular “Harry Potter” book series into a TV show, first announcing the project in April 2023 with a whopping 10-year commitment. Since then, Dominic McLaughlin has been cast as the titular boy wizard, with Alastair Stout and Arabella Stanton joining him as Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.
Emmy winner John Lithgow (“The Crown”) will play Albus Dumbledore, with Paapa Essiedu (“I May Destroy You”) as Severus Snape, Janet McTeer (“Ozark”) as Minerva McGonagall, Nick Frost (“Into the Badlands”) as Rubeus Hagrid, Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch, and Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell. (Get more scoop on the cast here.)
In Season 1, “there is nothing special about Harry Potter – at least that’s what his Aunt Petunia always says,” per the official synopsis. “On his 11th birthday, a letter of admittance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry opens up a hidden world for Harry: one of fun, friendship and magic. But with this new adventure comes great risk as Harry is forced to face a dangerous enemy from his past.”
Does Hoult fit the part of Gilderoy Lockhart? Give us your take on the casting in a comment below.
