42-Year-Old Man Fails to Land Hermione Role in New ‘Harry Potter’ TV Series Amid 30,000 Audition Frenzy!

A live-action Harry Potter TV series was first announced for HBO Max in January 2021, but progress was delayed due to rights issues with Warner Bros., which expire in April 2025.

The show was officially confirmed in April 2023 and will stream on Max (formerly HBO Max). In February 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced it would premiere in 2026. By June 2024, the series moved back to HBO.

No official casting has been announced yet, but rumors point out that some pretty big names on the British acting scene are being eyed for the main roles.

Excitement is growing as casting begins. About 30,000 kids have sent audition tapes for the main roles of Harry, Hermione, and Ron, with production set to start in the summer of 2025.

Due to this overwhelming number of kids that set the audition tapes, was one bizarre case in which a 42-year-old man also reportedly tried to audition for the role of Hermione Granger. The 42-year-old man hoping to play Hermione was rejected, but according to the show’s ghostwriter, Francesca Gardiner, final casting decisions haven’t been made yet.

Rumors about casting include Mark Rylance as Dumbledore, with Mark Strong also considered for the role. Paapa Essiedu is being discussed for Snape. Sharon Horgan has been mentioned for McGonagall, though there are conflicting reports about Rachel Weisz being a contender too. Brett Goldstein is rumored for Hagrid. However, none of these actors have received formal offers yet and HBO is notably tight-lipped about the whole process

“We are going to follow the ethos of the films to source some of the finest British talent and brilliant theatre actors that we are lucky to have over generations” said series director Mark Mylod, who previously worked on HBO’s ‘Succession’.

According to ‘MailOnline,’ J.K. Rowling will have the final say on all major casting decisions for the show.

Fans can also expect changes to Hogwarts itself. Mylod shared that the first eight-hour series will delve into the castle’s “depths and crevices” and show how it might have evolved over time.

“Our approach is not to undermine what was done previously but evolve it,” Mylod explained. “We don’t want to mess with the Great Hall built in 900AD but will expand other elements of Hogwarts to explore the idea that if it was a real college, then it would have evolved to include elements of Georgian architecture, for example.”

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