Harry Potter TV series' Hagrid has key element questioned by original film director: "Part of me was like, what's the point?"

But, while new cast members are taking on the familiar characters, many have noticed that the costumes – particularly Nick Frost's getup as the half-giant Hagrid – look incredibly similar to the films.

Hagrid was originally played by Robbie Coltrane, who sported a long brown overcoat for the role, complete with long curly hair and a long beard.

Speaking on The Rest is Entertainment podcast, Columbus pointed out the similarity in Frost's costume: "As of yesterday, I saw photographs online of Nick Frost as Hagrid.

"Now, that’s not Nick Frost – that’s presumably still Martin [Bayfield]...a rugby player who played Hagrid with a giant sort of fake rubber Hagrid head that we sometimes replaced with CGI.

"So I’m seeing these photographs of, now it looks like Martin – I could be wrong – wearing a Nick Frost head, walking down the streets of London. And he’s wearing the exact same costume that we designed for Hagrid."

He added: "Part of me was like, what’s the point? Part of me was like, okay, great. I thought everything was going to be different, but it’s more of the same, which is interesting.

"It’s very flattering for me because that’s exactly the Hagrid costume that we designed. So part of it is really exciting – I’m excited to see what they’re going to do with it. But part of it is sort of déjà vu all over again.”

The new TV series, which is expected to be released in 2027, is expected to reimagine the wizarding world, with each season focusing on a different book from JK Rowling's wildly popular series.

Columbus, who has said he doesn't want to be involved in the reboot, recently opened up to Radio Times magazine about the scenes he wishes he could have included in the films, explaining: “I missed the fact that I was never able to put Peeves in the first film.”

He added: “Plus, there is a scene in the first book, Philosopher’s Stone, where Hermione and Harry are tasting potions in one of the challenges, and one of them could die at any moment.

“It's like this incredible chess match that we just did not have time to shoot. So hopefully those scenes will be reinstated [in the series]. They have 10 hours. I hope they use them well.”

Harry Potter author 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.

Watch or listen to The Rest Is Entertainment wherever you get your podcasts. The Harry Potter series will air on HBO in 2027.

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