Harry Potter: Every Actor Recast

While Harry Potter stars like Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson made their characters iconic, many characters were recast throughout the film series.

While the Harry Potter franchise is best known for its huge cast of the best British actors, it has also seen a surprising number of recast characters. Many Harry Potter stars became synonymous with their characters, as an entire generation of fans would associate Ralph Fiennes with his role as Voldemort. But Fiennes isn't the first to play the Dark Lord, and it looks like the franchise has made the most of the opportunity by bringing in bigger stars to recast the role.

Recasting a popular character can be a jarring experience for viewers, so producers never take it lightly. In the case of the Harry Potter series, it's worth noting that not every book is released when the movie premieres. This means that characters who were minor in the first part of the story may take on a larger role in Harry Potter's journey, as the Chosen Ones move on and the original cast no longer fits their roles. Harry Potter is also a coming-of-age story, which means that many of the actors are children who may not want or be able to continue filming at such a formative time in their lives. and, belonging to Of course, sometimes the reasons for recasting are tragic.

Albus Dumbledore - Richard Harris Was Replaced By Michael Gambon

Richard Harris played the headmaster of Hogwarts and Harry Potter's mentor, Favor Gregory, in the first two films, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Albus Dumbledore of Lyffindor. The actor died of Hodgkin's disease shortly before the release of Chamber of Secrets in 2002. He was replaced by Michael Gambon, who held the role from the third film, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, through to the completion of the series.

Bill Weasley - Richard Fish Was Replaced By Domnhall Gleeson

Bill was briefly portrayed by Richard Fish in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, although he did not have any lines. Bill posed for photos with his family on a trip to Egypt and the magical snap shows the happy Weasleys waving to the camera. Meanwhile, Domhall Gleeson has a slight edge as Bill in Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2, as his father Brendan Gleeson plays Mad-Eye Moody, and he is one of many "cursed" Defense Against the Dark Arts professors. In an interview for the BUILD Series, Gleeson shared that when he was asked to stand For the Weasleys. Gleeson also revealed that he had auditioned for previous Harry Potter roles, including Stan Thorn Parker, but was not selected. However, that all changed when he auditioned and landed the role of Bill.

Elphias Doge - Peter Cartwright Was Replaced By David Ryall

Elphias Doge was a classmate and close friend of Albus Dumbledore who first appeared on screen in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The role is played by Peter Cartwright, a member of the Order of the Phoenix advance team tasked with transporting Harry safely to 12 Grimmauld Place. Cartwright has no lines and was replaced by David Ryall in Deathly Hallows – Part 1. Elphias has more work to do in this movie, as he talks to Harry at Bill and Fleur's wedding. This may be due to Ryle's significant acting experience with Cartwright, as he is known both on stage and screen.

Lord Voldemort - Richard Bremmer And Ian Hart Were Replaced By Ralph Fiennes

Philosopher's Stone sees two actors play the role of the Dark Lord. Richard Bremer appears in flashbacks depicting Voldemort murdering Harry's parents, but his face is not seen. Ian Hart doesn't appear on screen, but his face is CGI composited onto the back of Professor Quirrell's head during the film's climax, and Hart Scenes. However, both actors were replaced by Ralph Fiennes in Goblet of Fire's Harry Potter, in which Voldemort returns. Bremmer has openly speculated that producers wanted a bigger star in the final film, with the villain playing a bigger role. This theory makes sense, since Fiennes stuck with Voldemort's character until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2. Only those who provide the correct password are allowed to enter. She was first portrayed by Elizabeth Spriggs in Philosopher's Stone, a character who was serious in her code-questioning duties. However, Dawn French still had a lot to do to play the fat woman in Prisoner of Azkaban, after her likeness was attacked by Sirius Black. The fat woman also humorously tries to break the glass with her singing. The recast makes sense, because while French is a seasoned Shakespearean actor, French is known for her comedic work and is a better fit for the character of the fat woman in the third film.

The Fat Lady - Elizabeth Spriggs Was Replaced By Dawn French

Chaser On the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Angelina Johnson ended up being captain in Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts. Danielle Tabor played Angelina in the first three films, with Tiana Benjamin taking over the role in the Easter-egg-heavy Goblet of Fire. Besides Benjamin having a longer credits, it's speculated that Tabor was replaced because she looked younger than the Weasley twins, and Goblet of Fire saw Fred take Angelina to the Yule Ball. However, the fourth film was Angelina's final appearance, as Benjamin's commitment to British soap EastEnders prevented her from returning to film Order of the Phoenix.

Angelina Johnson - Danielle Tabor Was Replaced By Tiana Benjamin

As a Hogwarts ghost, Nina Young's Lady in Gray just floats in the background in Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets. There's so little to do with the role that Young isn't even officially acknowledged in the second film. But in Deathly Hallows - Part 2, the Gray Lady takes on a bigger role, as it's revealed that she's actually Helena Ravenclaw, the daughter of Hogwarts founder Rowena Ravenclaw. Helena also shares an important scene with Harry about the Horcrux in the Crown, so it's possible the producers wanted to find a more experienced actor for the role, which led to the established Actor Kelly Macdonald becomes the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw.

The Grey Lady (aka Helena Ravenclaw) - Nina Young Was Replaced By Kelly Macdonald

In Philosopher's Stone, Tom, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron, is a happy man who knows Hagrid's drink list and is very happy to see the Boy Who Lived. However, actor Derek Deadman hadn't acted much since Harry Potter and died in 2014 of complications from diabetes. Jim Tavarre will replace Deadman in Prisoner of Azkaban. This could be due to the health of the dead, or Prisoner of Azkaban director Alfonso Cuarón taking over after Chris Columbus exited the Harry Potter franchise, taking the story in a darker direction as Tavarre's The Igor-inspired performances and aesthetics are more terrifying than Deadman's portrayal.

Tom The Innkeeper - Derek Deadman Was Replaced By Jim Tavaré

The main cast of Harry Potter consists almost entirely of British heavyweights, so American actor Verne Troyer is a special case, as he was chosen to play the Gringotts banker in Philosopher's Stone. Leprechaun Griphook. Griphook, however, is voiced by British actor Warwick Davis, who also plays Hogwarts' Professor of Charms, Professor Flitwick. Producers were probably impressed by the double performance of Davis, who completely took over the role of Griphook in Deathly Hallows Part 1 and 2.

Griphook - Verne Troyer Was Replaced By Warwick Davis

Katie Bell was another Gryffindor Quidditch Chaser and Harry's teammate. She was played by Emily Dyer in Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets, and was replaced by Georgina Leonidas from Half-Blood Prince until the end of the series. Unsurprisingly, this is likely due to the fact that Leonidas is a more experienced actor, and the Half-Blood Prince has seen Katie fall victim to a cursed necklace, so she has more to do.

Katie Bell - Emily Dale Was Replaced By Georgina Leonidas

Lavender Brown makes her first brief appearance in Chamber of Secrets, but she has no lines, and actress Katherine Cowley doesn't even appear in the role. Jennifer Smith replaced Cowley in Prisoner of Azkaban, and while Lavender still doesn't have any dialogue, she's in the background in more scenes. But the character took on a bigger role in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, as she became Ron Weasley's girlfriend. This is when Jessie Cave was recast as Lavender, a role she assumed for the rest of the franchise. Cave was likely chosen for her broader film work, though the replacement decision was contested because she was a white actor who replaced two people of color. The race of lavender is not mentioned in the book, It's also not a factor in the storyline, so many viewers have accused the films of whitewashing an already predominantly white franchise.

Lavender Brown - Jennifer Smith Was Replaced By Jessie Cave

Alicia Spinnet was another Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team when Harry was at Hogwarts. Alicia is portrayed as a good-natured person who stood up for her friends, doesn't speak in the Harry Potter films and only appears during Quidditch matches. Leilah Sutherland played her in Philosopher's Stone, and Rochelle Douglas took over the role in Chamber of Secrets. That's the only acting credit for Sutherland and Douglas, with no known reason for the replacement. Douglas is also a gymnastics instructor, so she may be more capable of filming Quidditch action scenes.

Alicia Spinnet - Leilah Sutherland Was Replaced By Rochelle Douglas

Interestingly, Padma Patil is a Ravenclaw in the books, but the movie makes her a Gryffindor along with her twin sister Parvati. Sharon Sandhu played Padma in Prisoner of Azkaban, and like many of the other Gryffindor students, she's mostly in background roles. Not sure why Afshan Azad replaced Sandhu in place of Goblet of Fire, but again it could be because Padma has a bigger role as she was Ron's least successful relationship in Harry Potter, serving the As his troubled Yule Ball date. Azad went on to play Padma for the rest of the team.

Padma Patil - Sharon Sandhu Was Replaced By Afshan Azadp

The more outgoing of the twins, Parvati Patil is a Gryffindor through and through. She first appeared with twin Padma in Prisoner of Azkaban as part of Harry Potter's Hogwarts Junior Class. Parvati gets a little more screen time than her twin, as she learns how to defeat Boggart in Defense Against the Dark Arts and was photographed enjoying a divination class with Lavender Brown. However, similar to Angelina Johnson's recast, Shah is likely to be replaced by Shefari Choudhury as she looks too young and the production team wanted an older person for the Yule Ball scene, Because Parvati is Harry's date. However, unlike her older sister Padma, Parvati only appears from the Goblet of Fire to the Half-Blood Prince for reasons that are unclear.

Parvati Patil - Sitara Shah Was Replaced By Shefali Chowdhury

Although not shown in the books, Slytherin had great heroes like Regulus Black. But when most readers think of Salazar's house, they think of the likes of Pansy Parkinson, Draco Malfoy's best friend and all-around Slytherin bully. However, Pansy doesn't think much of it in the movie. This might explain why she was played by four different actors. Katherine Nicholson as Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets, Lauren Shotton played Pansy in Goblet of Fire - neither actor is famous. Meanwhile, Genevieve Gaunt starred in Prisoner of Azkaban, where she bullied Harry in Care of Fantastic Beasts and cared for Draco after he broke his arm. Starting with Order of the Phoenix, Scarlett Hefner (née Bourne) played Pansy throughout the rest of the series. The reason for the constant recasting is unknown, but other Harry Potter recasts suggest it may be due to age or experience.

Pansy Parkinson - Genevieve Gaunt Was Replaced By Scarlett Hefner

NEXT: What's next for the Harry Potter series?