Wizarding Worldz
Daniel Radcliffe on Harry Potter gives a hilarious explanation as to why he proceeded to portray the character throughout the years.
Daniel Radcliffe, the actor in Harry Potter, explains why he performed the character for ten years. When Radcliffe was 12, he was cast as Harry Potter in the premiere feature Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
He would reprise his role as the eponymous character in each subsequent sequel, culminating in the last film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, when he was 22 years old, thus spending his boyhood and early twenties in the Wizarding World.
Since ending the Harry Potter series, Radcliffe has been in a variety of films, including Swiss Army Man alongside Paul Dano, Alexandre Aja’s Horns, Greg McLean’s Jungle, and Guns Akimbo with Samara Weaving.
The actor has also appeared on television, where he played Ezekiel Brown in the comedy series Miracle Workers. Radcliffe’s most recent projects are The Lost City, in which he co-starred with Sandra Bullock, and Weird Al in the comedy biopic Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, in which he will play Weird Al.
On the A24 Podcast, Radcliffe reviewed his career, including his stint as Harry Potter, and gave a humorous rationale for portraying the role for ten years.
The actor stated that his parents would ask him each year if he was still interested in reprising his role as Harry Potter in another film, to which Radcliffe would always respond, “Yes. I despise school.” Of course, Radcliffe did not skip school but rather had his education completed on set, which he clearly preferred to the actual thing. Read the whole of his reply below:
My mom and dad asked me between every film, basically, ‘Are you still enjoying it, and do you want to go back?’ I was always like, ‘Yes. I hate school.’
The Harry Potter series has continued without Radcliffe in the Fantastic Beasts franchise, which has been fairly successful by comparison, with the most recent addition.
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, seeing the largest box office decline ever. A Harry Potter-themed series was recently announced on HBO Max, albeit no specifics about the characters or time period were released.
Many people believe that now is the moment to bring Radcliffe and his co-stars back to explore the roles as adults.
Many young actors, particularly those in long-running shows, grow up on sets and are immersed in the world of filmmaking, making it difficult to return to “normal” existence with regular education.
It’s hardly surprising that Radcliffe chose to play Harry Potter than going to school at home, especially since his movie school was Hogwarts.
While not everyone is built in the same manner, it would take a lot to persuade a kid actor playing such a significant part to forego it, especially given Radcliffe’s repeated statements about the Harry Potter cast and crew being like his second family.