HBO's New Harry Potter Season 2 Actor Played The Same Role Only One Year Ago

Published Aug 25, 2026, 7:15 PM EDT Ben is a Senior Writer on the New TV team at Screen Rant. He graduated from the University of Central Lancashire with a First Class B.A. Degree in English Literature and History. Born and raised in Ireland, Ben has always had a love for storytelling in all forms of media and operates multiple projects under the name Benjamin Blogs. Ben is a comic book writer and podcast host, in addition to his work as an entertainment journalist. He has worked as both a writer and editor for Screen Rant, Collider, and other media outlets across various departments, including features, news, reviews, and interviews. HBO's new Harry Potter series has beefed up the cast for upcoming seasons, with one recruit actually reprising their role. The astonishingly popular fantasy series, which was originally adapted for the big screen between 2001 and 2011, is embracing a new era as the story is retold with a brand-new cast and a much longer format story. At present, each year of Harry Potter's time at Hogwarts is set to play out over an individual season, which will consist of eight episodes, at least for season 1, which means the show will have a lot more room to explore and refine the story that initially occupied a single feature-length slot. While much of the cast of the series is comprised of actors who are new to these specific roles, there is one actor who was recently announced to join the ensemble who has had ample experience exploring their character already. That is, of course, Kit Harington, previously of Game of Thrones fame, who will be playing Gilderoy Lockhart in the upcoming HBO series. Kit Harington Has Already Played Gilderoy Lockhart In Harry Potter In the original film series, Gilderoy Lockhart was played by Kenneth Branagh, whose success as both an actor and a filmmaker made him an excellent candidate to portray one of the most famous characters in the Wizarding World after Harry Potter. However, when the books were recently recorded for Audible with a full cast, Kit Harington tackled the role of Lockhart. On top of his prior experience, Harington also appears to be an avid fan of the Harry Potter series, which he has spoken openly about in a recent interview with Collider in the wake of this announcement: "I'm a huge Potter fan. I've got to be honest, he's one of my favourite characters, so, to be offered to play him is a real dream. I've had a taste of him [in the audiobook] and felt my way around him. He's just a wonderful creation." Evidently, Harington has a passion for the project, combined with familiarity with his character, and a baseline upon which he can use to develop and build his performance in the series, which all makes for a profoundly exciting opportunity with this new casting. Because of course, before Harington was cast, Nicholas Hoult was announced to be playing Gilderoy Lockhart in the show. Harington Is Quietly A Better Choice To Play Lockhart Than Nicholas Hoult Nicholas Hoult rose to fame at a young age for his spectacular performance in About a Boy, where, as a child, he held his own beside acclaimed actor Hugh Grant. From there, Hoult went from strength to strength, securing prominent roles in major franchise films like X-Men: First Class, Mad Max: Fury Road, and most recently, Superman. Beyond his notable roles in global franchises, Hoult has also gained acclaim and widespread recognition for leading roles in projects like Juror #2, The Menu, and Nosferatu, cementing his reputation as one of Hollywood's most talented up-and-coming stars. And yet, despite all of that, Hoult's apparent scheduling conflict resulting in the actor being replaced by Kit Harington seems like the best possible outcome. Harington feels like a much more suitable choice for the off-kilter celebrity of the Wizarding World. Capable of playing both deeply serious characters and those with profoundly unserious undertones, Harington just makes sense. And while Hoult is arguably the more experienced and diverse character actor of the two, Harington has proven his ability to captivate and convince audiences with his charm, attitude, and ability to play layered, complex, lovable characters. Gilderoy is all of that wrapped up in a neat package, making him an ideal character for Kit Harington to continue playing. Release Date December 25, 2026 Showrunner Francisca Gardiner Directors Mark Mylod Cast Dominic McLaughlin Harry Potter Janet McTeer Minerva McGonagall