Star Wars legend confirmed to return as Harry Potter film character in the TV version
Our Charms professor is back in action!
The Harry Potter series has officially confirmed the return of its first original cast member – Warwick Davis as Professor Filius Flitwick.
Davis portrayed the Hogwarts Charms professor in all eight of the Harry Potter movies (as well as taking on the role of Griphook the goblin).
Now, it's been announced he'll reprise the role of Flitwick for the HBO TV series, which is set for release in 2027. This time, Davis is passing the role of Griphook over to Leigh Gill.
Various other castings have also been confirmed, including Elijah Oshin as Dean Thomas, Finn Stephens as Vincent Crabbe, and William Nash as Gregory Goyle.
Meanwhile, we'll also be seeing a character that was never shown in the film series as Richard Durden takes on the role of Professor Cuthbert Binns (the History of Magic professor).
Sirine Saba will play professor of Herbology Pomona Sprout, while Bríd Brennan will take on the role of Madam Poppy Pomfrey.
The new Harry Potter series is set to dedicate a season to each of JK Rowling's books, with the first focusing on the iconic first novel, The Philosopher's Stone.
It's written and executive produced by Francesca Gardiner, whilst Mark Mylod will executive produce and direct multiple episodes of the series for HBO in association with Brontë Film and TV and Warner Bros Television.
It had previously been confirmed that Dominic McLaughlin will be leading the cast as Harry Potter, along with Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger and Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley.
Sherlock's Louise Brealey will play Madam Rolanda Hooch and Andor's Anton Lesser will play Garrick Ollivander, whilst other notable casting includes John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley, Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy and Johnny Flynn as Lucius Malfoy.
Harry Potter author JK Rowling has faced backlash in some quarters due to her views on transgender rights. In 2020, she published a lengthy statement detailing her stance on sex and gender debates – the essay was criticised and disputed by LGBTQ+ charities including Stonewall.
Rowling has also shared her views on social media, including in a 2024 post on X (formerly Twitter), in which she insisted that "there are no trans kids" and opposed the idea that a child can be "born in the wrong body".
In May 2025, Rowling set up the JK Rowling Women’s Fund, which describes itself as offering legal funding support to "individuals and organisations fighting to retain women’s sex-based rights".
Harry Potter actors including Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have distanced themselves from Rowling's views and have issued statements supporting the transgender community. Others, including Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter and Jim Broadbent, have defended the author from the criticism she has received.
The Harry Potter series will stream on HBO Max.
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Authors
Louise Griffin is the Sci-Fi & Fantasy Editor for Radio Times, covering everything from Doctor Who, Star Wars and Marvel to House of the Dragon and Good Omens. She previously worked at Metro as a Senior Entertainment Reporter and has a degree in English Literature.
