John Lithgow has confirmed he will take on the role of Albus Dumbledore in the upcoming HBO adaptation of the Harry Potter novels.
The Hogwarts headmaster was previously portrayed by Richard Harris in the first film adaptations, The Philosopher’s Stone and The Chamber of Secrets. His death in 2002 saw Michael Gambon take over the role for the remaining films.
Jude Law played a younger version of Dumbledore in two films in the prequel franchise Fantastic Beasts, The Crimes of Grindelwald and The Secrets of Dumbledore.
Speaking to Screen Rant, 79-year-old Lithgow said the casting news “came as a total surprise to me.”
He continued: “I just got the phone call up at the Sundance Film Festival for yet another film, and it was not an easy decision because it's going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I'm afraid.
“But I’m very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to Harry Potter. That’s why it’s been such a hard decision. I’ll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I’ve said yes.”
The TV adaption, confirmed by HBO Max in 2023, aims to be a “faithful adaptation of the beloved Harry Potter book series by author and executive producer JK Rowling.” The series is expected to run for a decade, each season based on one of the seven books.
While casting calls for the three young leads — Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger — opened in September 2024, HBO has been scouting for older actors over the past few months to play adult characters such as Dumbledore and the primary villain Voldemort.
In November 2024, reports said producers were angling for Oscar-winning star of stage and screen Mark Rylance for the role of Dumbledore. A couple of months earlier, Gary Oldman, who played Harry Potter’s godfather Sirius Black in the original film franchise, said he would be up to playing Dumbledore.
In December, reports suggested I May Destroy You star Paapa Essiedu was the top choice to play Potions professor Severus Snape, played last by Alan Rickman in the film franchise. The same month, rumors suggested Ted Lasso actor Brett Goldstein was being tapped to star as gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid, who was originally played by Robbie Coltrane.
Nearly 32,000 children have sent audition tapes for the lead roles of Harry, Hermione, and Ron, but no casting announcements have been made yet.
