TV & Movies
These Harry Potter Stars Have Been Busy Over The Last 20 Years
Where did the time go?!
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Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint were all very young before starring as Harry, Hermione, and Ron in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone 20 years ago. As HBO Max’s highly-anticipated reunion special airs on Jan. 1, let’s revisit what the cast has been up to since.
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Since Sorcerer’s Stone, Radcliffe has been in thrillers, Netflix comedies, and acclaimed Broadway productions. Watson graduated from Brown University, became a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, and starred in Little Women, and Grint joined TV and Broadway shows and welcomed a daughter in 2020.
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A child actor even before landing the role of Harry’s elitist nemesis Draco Malfoy, Tom Felton had already appeared in The Borrowers, Second Sight, and Anna and the King. To this day, Felton throws back to his Draco days on Instagram, even occasionally rewatching the films via Live.
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Maggie Smith was already a multi-award-winning actor and a Dame before playing fan-favorite Professor McGonagall. Her impressive filmography included Sister Act and its sequel, California Suite, and The First Wives Club. She also had already worked with HP co-stars prior — including Radcliffe in 1999’s David Copperfield.
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Though she continues to wow with her stellar performances in films such as The Lady in the Van, Smith’s longest and most notable role since is as the Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey. She’ll reprise her role for the second film in 2022.
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While the HP films were Evanna Lynch’s acting debut as Luna Lovegood, Matthew Lewis already had a career as a child actor before playing Neville Longbottom. Since then, he starred in Me Before You and Terminal and became the HP actor fans thirsted over following his glow-up.
Screenshot via YouTube/HBO Max
After the films, Lynch joined Dancing With the Stars, wrote a memoir, and launched a vegan podcast. Meanwhile Alfred Enoch, who was also a fairly new actor when he played Dean Thomas, has similarly had a bustling post-HP career, becoming a series regular on shows How to Get Away with Murder and Foundation.
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Bonnie Wright was only 9 when she debuted as Ginny Weasley, aka Harry’s future wife, and had no prior acting experience. Since, she’s modeled, directed shorts like Phone Calls, and starred in The Sea and the 2018 remake of A Christmas Carol. Catch her in Those Who Wander next.
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Sadly, some of the beloved cast members have since passed. Alan Rickman (Love Actually) and Helen McCrory (The Queen), who played Severus Snape and Narcissa Malfoy, died from cancer in 2016 and 2021, respectively. Richard Harris, the original Dumbledore, died in 2002.
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Before taking over the role of Dumbledore, Michael Gambon was already knighted for his contributions to drama thanks to his massive résumé of TV and movie projects. Though he retired from the theater in 2015, he continued to act in Cordelia, King of Thieves, and the biopic Judy.