What 15 Supporting Actors From Harry Potter Look Like Today

Believe it or not, it’s been almost 20 years since the first installment of the Harry Potter saga was released (yep, we feel kind of old when we think about that too). Harry Potter was the saga that made us all fall in love with magic again and thanks to its beloved characters, we discovered that a little mystery is nothing to be afraid of. That’s why today we thought we’d take a one-way ticket to nostalgia city and see how the supporting actors from the saga have changed over 2 decades.

Bright Side wanted to pay tribute to some of the greatest characters J.K. Rowling came up with and that we didn’t really have the chance to see for a longer time onscreen, even if we wanted to.

1. Molly Weasley: Julie Walters

The mother of Ron Weasley, Harry’s best friend, played one of the most important yet underrated roles in the saga. She was maybe the only mother figure Harry Potter had in his life after his parents died. She was played by actress Julie Walters, who’s not short on charisma. Another beloved character this actress brought to the big screen is Rosie Mulligan from Mamma Mia!

2. Arthur Weasley: Mark Williams

And there’s no way we can forget Arthur Weasley. Ron’s father worked at the Ministry of Magic Affairs doing research about the lives of non-magical people, also sometimes referred to as muggles. He always supported and welcomed Harry as a member of his family. Actor Mark Williams is best known for being a British comedian and he had a major role in the popular BBC series The Fast Show.

3. Fleur Delacour: Clémence Poésy

We got to meet Fleur Delacour for the first time in the fourth installment, where she took part in the Triwizard Tournament as the favorite candidate for Beauxbatons School. After that, Fleur ended up marrying the oldest of the Weasley brothers, Bill. French actress Clémence Poésy has continued her career in the movie industry. And among her latest films, you’ll find Tenet.

4. Viktor Krum: Stanislav Ianevski

Just like Fleur Delacour, Viktor Krum was one of the participants of the Triwizard Tournament. He was also a well-known quidditch player. Despite those exploits, you might actually remember him for his failed attempt to conquer Hermione’s heart. But actually, the last time he appears in the story is at Fleur and Bill Weasley’s wedding. This exotic character was played by Stanislav Ianevski, a Bulgarian actor who continued working on a couple of other films after his role in the wizard’s saga. One of the best-known films he took part in is Resistance.

5. Dean Thomas: Alfred Enoch

From the first movie and throughout the entire saga, Harry had a couple of memorable housemates who he ran into from time to time in Gryffindor’s common house or around the school. One of them was Dean Thomas, played by Alfred Enoch. The actor is half-English and half-Brazilian. He became more popular over the years, especially after he was cast for one of the lead roles in the series How to Get Away With Murder and we were surprised to find out that he was Harry Potter’s friend from Gryffindor! He also appeared in Sherlock and in Troy: Fall of a City.

6. Seamus Finnigan: Devon Murray

Seamus was another of Harry’s schoolmates who, while not always agreeing with him, showed his support throughout most of the saga. Seamus was actually Dean’s best friend and they even shared a room. He was played by actor Devon Murray. This actor also enjoys spending time with horses, and has owned at least 6 of them.

7. Madame Olympe Maxime: Frances de la Tour

Frances de la Tour brought Madame Maxime to the big screen. Maxime was a very senior director at Beauxbatons and also the only woman we saw Hagrid take interest in, at least in the movies. In 2006, she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in The History of Boys. Later in her career, she worked on Alice in Wonderland and Netflix’s Enola Holmes based on the first book of the Enola Holmes series written by Nancy Springer.

8. Professor Sprout: Miriam Margolyes

Professor Sprout taught a strange subject at Hogwarts School of Magic, Herbology. She was also the head of the Hufflepuff House and was always seen as this sweet and friendly teacher, the kind of person you’d like to talk to if you were in trouble. Miriam Margolyes, the actress who was in charge of playing this character, studied English at Cambridge University and she’s proud of it. A fun fact is that she openly admitted to not liking actor Richard Harris, who played Dumbledore in the first installments of the saga.

9. Professor Trelawney: Emma Thompson

Sybill Trelawney was the Divination teacher at Hogwarts School. She was the person who made the prophecy concerning how Harry and the rest would defeat He-who-can’t-be-named. She also made the prophecy about “the chosen one.” This character was played by the Emmy, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Oscar-winning actress Emma Thompson. Thomson, besides being one of the most famous British actresses in the world, is also known for her passionate dedication to environmental causes. She has supported several campaigns against climate change on numerous occasions, including some for the international NGO Greenpeace.

10. Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody: Brendan Gleeson

Of all the professors that Harry had during his student days at Hogwarts, Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody was one of the strangest ones: from his sloppy appearance and his fake glass eye, to his irreverent, twitchy attitude, there was nothing ordinary about this man. Brendan Gleeson’s looks and character, aside from those of this strange wizard, are actually very sweet. When he’s not acting, the actor likes to play the mandolin or fiddle. He has appeared in many movies, including Scorsese’s Gangs of New York.

11. Narcissa Malfoy: Helen McCrory

Helen McCrory played Narcissa Malfoy, the mother of Draco Malfoy, Harry’s longtime nemesis at school and later on in battle. Even though the character of Narcissa doesn’t really appear too much on-screen throughout the saga, she is definitely an important one. She actually changes the faith of many characters, including her own son, by supporting Harry’s team when the time comes, in order to save her son. After playing this role, Helen McCrory took part in several projects amongst which is Penny Dreadful, a gothic horror series.

12. Peter Pettigrew aka Scabbers: Timothy Spall

Peter Pettigrew, better known in the books and the movies as Scabbers, was an animago capable of turning into a rat. This strange ability allowed him to pretend to be Ron Weasley’s pet for years. This character is remembered as the faithful servant of He-who-can’t-be-named for a long time. Despite being diagnosed with leukemia in 1996, actor Timothy Spall has continued his career in film and television. Some of his latest projects include movies like It Snows in Benidorm and Nick Park’s animated movie Early Man.

13. Remus Lupin: David Thewlis

The third installment of the saga introduces one of the most memorable characters and beloved professors in the history of these movies, Remus Lupin. This professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts teaches Harry how to conjure a Patronus to keep dementors at bay. Apart from being a werewolf, he was one of Harry’s father’s best friends. In addition to his role in Harry Potter, David Thewlis has appeared in other famous movies like Wonder Woman and Justice League in 2017. In these films, he played Ares, the god of war.

14. Rita Skeeter: Miranda Richardson

You probably remember this nosy reporter that appeared throughout the saga. She was always looking for embarrassing stories to write about in the newspaper or in books. Her name was Rita Skeeter and she was played by famous British actress Miranda Richardson. This character appeared very rarely, but she always liked to draw attention to herself with her exotic personality and exuberant style.

15. Xenophilius Lovegood: Rhys Ifans

Another character who had a very small role in the development of the story of Harry Potter was Luna’s father, Xenophilius Lovegood. Still, this character conveyed a mysterious and extravagant aura that drew everyone’s attention the minute he appeared on the screen. Something you might not know about actor Rhys Ifans is that he was born in Haverfordwest and his mother tongue is Welsh. He actually decided to use the Welsh spelling to write his last name Evans as Ifans, for his stage name. After Harry Potter, he appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man, among other movies.

What is your favorite scene from the Harry Potter movies? What other supporting characters do you think we should have included in our list?