Despite the high quality of the film series and the universal love of the wizarding franchise, we wouldn’t be shocked if we learned that Warner Bros had opted to reboot Harry Potter. The series is one of the most lucrative of all time and, especially with the recent Hollywood trend to remake old classics, there could be lots of money there for Warner Bros if they did decide to remake it.
Even Daniel Radcliffe believes that a Harry Potter remake is an inevitable event, so we should begin to prepare ourselves for the (seemingly) inevitable. This article will recast the Hogwarts professors in the event of a Harry Potter reboot.
Professor Lupin: Matt Smith
While Matt Smith hasn’t starred in a vast number of Hollywood movies, he is still a highly capable actor with the skill and charm to capture Lupin’s own warm and welcoming character.
His work in Doctor Who especially shows that he can handle the lighthearted and balance it with a dark, dour past that would work well in portraying Remus Lupin.
Professor Quirrell: Rafe Spall
Anyone who has seen 2017’s The Ritual or 2019’s War of the Worlds will know that Rafe Spall is a fantastic actor who has a background in comedic acting and drama, making him more than suitable for the role of Professor Quirrell.
The British actor will be perfectly able to play both sides of Quirrell’s personality, the terrified and nervous character he puts on in front of others, and the intimidating and evil side he shows to Harry at the end of the first film.
Professor Lockhart: James McAvoy
It would be very hard to recast the role of Professor Lockhart due to the incredible performance of the professor by Kenneth Branaugh. That being said, a talented actor like James McAvoy would certainly stand a chance of making the character his own.
Hopefully, a reboot of Harry Potter would also explore more areas of the books that were left unexplored by the original movies, perhaps even featuring Lockhart in later books after his memory charm backfired.
Professor Snape: Harry Lloyd
Professor Snape is a role that is impossible to replace in the Harry Potter Movies. Alan Rickman’s performance was iconic and truly captured the character on the page and brought him to life on the screen.
Despite the fact that this role will, perhaps, be the most difficult to replace, there is good reason to believe that Harry Lloyd could play the part well. He is a deeply talented actor and also benefits from being closer to the book description of Severus Snape.
Professor Moody: Sean Bean
Brendan Gleeson’s performance as Moody was perfect, but simply recasting the actor would be cheating on this list. To capture Moody, we need an actor who can capture a similar level of the gruff, battle-scarred yet humorous character of Moody.
Sean Bean would be perfect for this role. Not only would he be able to capture the hardened nature of Moody, but he would also get to add another character death to his CV.
Professor McGonagall: Emma Thompson
Professor McGonagall is another character that is incredibly difficult to replace. That being said, Emma Thompson would be a fantastic choice to cast in the role. Thompson is a fantastic and versatile actress who is more than capable of playing the stern yet warm character of McGonagall.
Her background in comedy would also help her with the more comedic scenes required of McGonagall, though her dramatic background would add weight to the character.
Professor Hagrid: Mark Addy
Again, Robbie Coltrane’s Hagrid is another character that would be almost impossible to replace due to the stellar, iconic performance of the actor.
That being said, if the role had to be recast a natural actor to turn to would be Mark Addy. The former Game of Thrones and Knight’s Tale actor is fantastic at playing warm, comedic characters and would suit Hagrid perfectly.
Professor Trelawney: Tilda Swinton
Professor Trelawney is a strange and eccentric individual who was magnificently portrayed by Emma Thompson in the Harry Potter series. However, if a reboot were to occur, the best possible actress for the job would have to be Tilda Swinton.
While the role may be considered as too much of a bit part for such a wonderful actress, there is no denying that she would excel in the role and make it her own.
Professor Umbridge: Olivia Colman
While Olivia Colman has a strong background in comedic works and roles, whether it be her work in Peep Show or her Oscar-winning performance in The Favourite, she also has a talent in more dramatic roles as well, as shown by her appearance in Broadchurch.
There is no doubt that Olivia Colman would be able to bring the character of Umbridge to life, she is a talented actress who would excel in the role of the villain.
Professor Flitwick: Peter Dinklage
Warwick Davies is another actor who would be very difficult to replace. In his role as Professor Flitwick, Davies truly brought the character to life and captured the cheeky yet serious nature of the character.
Peter Dinklage would be the natural casting for the role of Flitwick. His fantastic portrayal of Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones shows his talent and would hopefully lead the filmmakers to give more screentime to Professor Flitwick in a potential reboot.
Professor Sprout: Liza Tarbuck
Originally, Professor Sprout was portrayed by Miriam Margolyes and was fantastic in the role, despite the limited screentime afforded to her.
An actress who would be fantastic for the part of Professor Sprout would be Liza Tarbuck. While she may not be too well known across the globe, she has a good reputation in the UK as a comedic actress. While she may not be as esteemed as Myriam Margolyes, she can excel with the comedic side of the character.
Professor Slughorn: Hugh Laurie
From humble beginnings acting in UK comedy TV shows such as A Bit of Fry and Laurie, Blackadder, and Jeeves and Wooster, Hugh Laurie has gone on to star in international smash hits such as House, The Night Manager, and Veep.
It is due to his comedic background that Laurie would work so well in the role of Slughorn who, while not an outright comedic character, is certainly a funny character. That being said, he also has the dramatic talent to capture Slughorn’s more emotional scenes.
Professor Dumbledore: Charles Dance
Choosing an actor to play the role of Albus Dumbledore was the most difficult decision to make on this list. Richard Harris, Michael Gambon, and even Jude Law have done fantastically in the role, so recasting the role of Hogwarts Headmaster is no easy task.
That being said, there is no doubt that Charles Dance would do brilliantly in the role. While he may be typecast as a menacing character, one would be hardpressed to claim that Dance could not capture the twinkle in the professor’s eye.
