The news that Warner Brothers Discovery was planning a continuation of the Harry Potter franchise was not surprising considering that the “Wizarding World” is one of the most profitable properties they currently own the rights to, and CEO David Zaslav has given every indication that he’s only interested in working on previously existing intellectual property. However, the news that their next venture would be a straight reboot of the core Harry Potter series that are again adapting the seven books into an HBO Max series felt like a slap in the face to the original stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson, each of whom dedicated over a decade of their lives to playing these roles.
It’s disappointing to see that the industry is so quick to move on from this level of commitment, but the truth is that Radcliffe never needed Harry Potter to launch his career, and he certainly doesn’t need to involve him in the series any further. Those who think that Radcliffe’s breakout role was in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone are incorrect, as his obvious talent and star power was evident to casting agents even before he landed the role of The Boy Who Lived. He had previously starred in a critically acclaimed BBC adaptation of David Copperfield, in what was perhaps as equally challenging of a role; most literary critics would agree that the work of Charles Dickens is beastly superior to that of the controversial authorship of J.K.
Rowling. Strangely, working on Harry Potter for over a decade may have prevented Radcliffe from taking on additional experimental roles. However, he’s certainly been making up for lost time in the years since the franchise reached its conclusion with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. While Radcliffe has always expressed good will and diplomacy when speaking in public about his Harry Potter experience, it’s safe to say that the discourse surrounding the franchise has reached its most toxic. Rowling’s double down on her transphobic statements has made it increasingly difficult to evaluate the original source material, and the box office underperformance of the Fantastic Beasts series suggested that the franchise needed Radcliffe more than he needed it.
Radcliffe unquestionably did incredible work with his role and earned the praises of an entire generation of fans, but he never needed it to be a star. Involving himself with the series again is simply the last thing he should do, as heading back to such a controversial franchise would be a stark contrast to the weirder, wiser, and frankly better projects that he’s done since.
Daniel Radcliffe Was Able to Do Something Different
Radcliffe showed in the immediate aftermath of Harry Potter that he wasn’t interested in simply signing up for another franchise and taking on another iconic role; fans may have loved to see him as a superhero, but it was evident that Radcliffe was itching to try out something completely outside of his comfort zone. Horror films like Woman in Black and Horns proved that he could deliver performances that worked for a completely different audience; it’s unlikely that these graphic genre projects would appeal to the same youthful viewers who loved Harry Potter. It indicated that instead of catering to his fans, Radcliffe could develop new ones.
Nonetheless, the affability and generally charismatic persona that Radcliffe brought to Harry was something that he continued to use to his advantage; it even suggested that he deserved more credit for elevating Rowling’s loose characterization anyway. Neither What If or Victor Frankenstein were entirely successful, but Radcliffe undoubtedly elevates the material with his endearing personality. What If follows nearly every cliche imaginable in a romantic comedy, but that doesn’t make Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan any less charming together. Victor Frankenstein is yet another attempted adaptation of the original source material featuring the tone-deaf writing of Max Landis, yet Radcliffe was able to find the sensitive soul within Igor, a character often depicted purely as a caricature in other versions of the story. Both films wouldn’t be worth recommending at all if it weren't for Radcliffe.
Daniel Radcliffe Continues to Challenge Himself
Harry Potter certainly required a lot from Radcliffe, but that didn’t mean he was at the point where he no longer wanted to challenge himself physically. This was certainly clear to those who watched his role as a talking, farting corpse nicknamed “Manny” in Swiss Army Man, the debut film of Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan before their Oscar winning work on Everything Everywhere All At Once. It’s the type of “go for broke” performance that could have easily become a career ruiner, but Radcliffe managed to do something so completely odd and charming that it worked. It’s a performance that required a tremendous amount of physical comedy, makeup effects, and improvisation that Radcliffe simply nailed; The Daniels’ simplistic philosophy wouldn’t have been nearly as endearing without someone like Radcliffe who could sell it.
Similarly, Radcliffe stepped into a role even more beloved than Harry when he signed on to play Weird Al Yankovic in the “not quite biopic” Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, in which he plays an arrogant, troubled version of the squeaky clean parody artist who has been a legend within the music industry since the 1970s. It’s another performance that could have gone disastrously wrong if it was misconceived as insulting or cynical, yet Radcliffe turned it into a wholly unique, hilariously exaggerated character that was distinct from Al’s actual personality; it’s more than likely that he’ll end up earning a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his work.
Among the most notable aspects of the HBO Max documentary special Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts were the memories and praises Radcliffe had for his experiences; he seemed to appreciate the friendships he made more than any monetary success or fame, and his earnestness earned the praise of such accomplished actors as Gary Oldman and the late great Robbie Coltrane. Considering that Radcliffe himself has proven to be an ally to the LGBTQIA+ community in the wake of Rowling’s intolerant statements, he has proven that he doesn’t need Harry Potter, and perhaps he never did.
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