Jared Harris responds to those young Dumbledore rumours
Maybe don’t pin all your hopes on The Crown star taking up his father’s mantle
Ever since it was confirmed that there’d be a younger version of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in prequel series Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, there’s only really been one actor in Harry Potter fans’ minds for the job – Jared Harris.
The son of original screen Dumbledore Richard Harris (who was replaced by Michael Gambon after his death), Harris recently received acclaim for his role as George VI in Netflix royal drama The Crown, and has inspired many fans to imagine him in the Dumbledore role (down to PhotoShopping him into the appropriate style).
However, it seems we might have jumped the gun (or wand) a little bit with this whole thing – because Harris himself thinks it’s pretty unlikely that he’ll make the cut.
“They’re obviously thinking about it,” Harris told the Evening Standard. “I haven’t heard anything and I don’t expect to. It’s not up to me.
And in fact, Harris suggested the fan campaign could do his chances more harm than good...
“Having seen [fan campaigns] before I find that [film bosses] don’t like to have their hands forced,” he explained.
“These campaigns almost always go in a different direction.”
Possibly time to obliviate that suggestion from our minds, then.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is in cinemas now
Authors
Huw Fullerton is a Commissioning Editor for Radio Times magazine, covering Entertainment, Comedy and Specialist Drama.
