Since debuting on the big screen in 2001, the Harry Potter series has gone on to become one of the most loved and lucrative film franchises of all time. It has given us some of the most iconic characters of our childhood, from Albus Dumbledore to the evil Lord Voldemort. However, Harry Potter wasn’t always a dark and dour story with solely serious tones. The series frequently veered into comedy, and some of these funny scenes and characters are also some of the most memorable in the whole series.
This article will list and rank the 10 funniest characters in the Harry Potter series.
Professor McGonagall
Professor McGonagall may not be the first character that comes to mind when one thinks of funny Harry Potter characters. The transfiguration professor is often considered to be stern and strict. Despite this, throughout the movies, she is shown to have a very dry and witty sense of humor. This is mostly seen in off the cuff quips to students.
In addition to her witty quips, McGonagall also has one of the funniest moments in Deathly Hallows Part II, when she giddily awakes the stone statues to defend Hogwarts from Voldemort’s army.
Mad Eye Moody (Barty Crouch Jr)
While it may be strange to have a known Death Eater on this list, he is certainly deserving of it despite the fact that he is, without doubt, an evil character.
Throughout the Goblet of Fire, Moody makes jokes and appears to be in good humor. However, perhaps his finest moment was when he transfigured Draco Malfoy into a ferret. When asked what he was doing by McGonagall, Moody simply replies ’teaching.'
Professor Snape
In a similar vein to Barty Crouch Jr, some may be confused to see Snape on this list. He is typically seen as an intimidating and scary character, a representation of that teacher we all had growing up.
Nevertheless, Snape had his witty moments throughout the movie. The scene in which he pushes Harry and Ron’s heads down in Goblet of Fire is hilarious, but perhaps his crowning moment was his sarcastic response to Umbridge in Order of the Phoenix.
Luna Lovegood
Luna Lovegood is a character who appears to be unintentionally funny, but this somehow makes her even funnier. Luna has accepted that she is a kooky individual, but has started to own this fact about herself. Rather than trying to change, she sticks to her interests.
Perhaps one of Luna’s most memorable and funny scenes was her retelling the tale of her sleepwalking adventures around Hogwarts. She delivers the story as if it isn’t even funny, which is what makes it even more so.
Professor Lockhart
While the entries so far have all focussed on the characters making jokes, this entry is of a character who is a joke. Lockhart was the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in Harry’s second year. Despite managing to reach this prestigious role, Lockhart was hilariously useless at most spells except for memory charms. This was made more than clear during the year, as Lockhart consistently failed to execute the spells he was attempting to teach the students.
In addition to being inept, Lockhart is also arrogant and vain. This, coupled with his inability to perform most spells, makes him incredibly fun to watch. In many ways, Lockhart is like the magical version of David Brent from the UK Office.
Argus Filch
This is another entry on this list that may be considered surprising. The Hogwarts caretaker is another character who is unintentionally funny. While his funniest moment may have been his odd run to Dumbledore in the Goblet of Fire, he has also made some wry and witty remarks to students, most notably about punishment and what lurks in the forbidden forest.
Despite the fact that he is certainly an unpleasant character, Filch is one of the funniest and most entertaining characters in Hogwarts.
Harry Potter
This is another potentially controversial addition to this list, but it is not one without justification. Harry is not without his comedic additions to the story. Perhaps his most well known comedic moment was during the Half Blood Prince. Harry had taken liquid luck in order to extract Professor Slughorn’s memories, and his interactions with the professor and Hagrid were hilarious.
In addition to this scene, Harry is also known for making witty comments throughout the series. Consequently, he deserves a place on this list.
Arthur Weasley
Arthur Weasley was funny from the moment we first saw him in the Chamber of Secrets. He was incredibly giddy about seeing Harry and instantly started asking him questions about muggle life. As we are all muggles in the audience, there is something hilarious about someone expressing such an excited interest in the mundane, such as rubber ducks. Furthermore, in the Order of the Phoenix, we see Arthur blundering about the London Underground with a giddy attitude, further showing his hilarious interest in muggle culture.
Arthur Weasley plays the role of the stereotypical, childish father in the Harry Potter series, and it’s vastly entertaining and funny to watch.
Ron Weasley
Ron Weasley may be an underrated comedic character. As with his own achievements, he is often overshadowed by his brothers, in this case, Fred and George.
The funniest scenes with Ron usually include a hilarious facial expression from the second youngest Weasley child. Perhaps his greatest comedy moment was his facial expression in Goblet of Fire when Professor McGonagall asks Ron to dance and then to ’take her waste.'
Fred and George Weasley
Who else could have topped this list? The Weasley twins are the characters we all think of when we think of funny Harry Potter characters. From the very moment we meet Fred and George in Chamber of Secrets, they’re playing a prank on their mother. This, essentially, shows us just what kind of characters they are.
Their ranking on this list is even more deserved when one considers that they even opened their own joke shop called Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes in order to further the jokes and pranks that students can play on each other at Hogwarts.
