Should Daniel Radcliffe maintain his position of not wanting to return for more Harry Potter movies, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore has proven that recasting Harry Potter can work for the Wizarding World. With Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore disappointing at the box office, the future of the Harry Potter universe is currently up in the air. If Warner Bros. Discovery wishes to reinvigorate the Wizarding World franchise with a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child adaptation, then Daniel Radcliffe's reluctance to return needn't necessarily be a sticking point, as Fantastic Beasts 3 has proven.

Gellert Grindelwald has been portrayed by multiple actors throughout the Harry Potter/Wizarding World movies, with Johnny Depp playing the criminal wizard in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. However, when Warner Bros asked him to step down, Depp was replaced with Mads Mikkelsen after filming on The Secrets of Dumbledore had already commenced. With the exception of Harry as a baby though, Daniel Radcliffe is the sole actor to play Harry Potter in the movies.

Related: Mads Mikkelsen’s Grindelwald Is Better Than Johnny Depp’s (It’s Not Even Close)

Daniel Radcliffe has said that he doesn't currently wish to return to the role of Harry Poter in a potential Cursed Child movie. The Harry Potter series though has shown that recasting a major role isn't an issue for the in-universe storytelling. Recasting Gellert Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore turned out well, as Mads Mikkelsen's portrayal of Grindelwald has been warmly received by critics and audiences. More significant though, the characters don't acknowledge that he looks different due to the change of actor playing the role. The same can be achieved for Harry Potter if Daniel Radcliffe doesn't wish to reprise his role. Cursed Child takes place 19 years after the Battle of Hogwarts, allowing suspension of disbelief given the passage of time and that when audiences last saw Harry Potter—with the exception of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’s epilogue—he was a teenager.

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There could have been any number of in-universe explanations put forward for why Grindelwald now looks like Mads Mikkelsen, but it isn't necessary. The audience knows the real-world reasons for recasting and drawing attention to it within the narrative detracts from the storytelling. The actors sell the change by carrying on as if Grindelwald hasn't changed. It works just as well as recasting James Bond over the years within the same continuity, and the same can be true if Daniel Radcliffe doesn't wish to play Harry Potter again. As well as recasting Grindelwald, the Harry Potter movies have also effectively recast roles previously. When Richard Harris sadly passed away, Dumbledore was recast, with Michael Gambon taking over. He made the character his own and though both portrayals have their merits, his is arguably the more revered and iconic.

Even though recasting Harry Potter could work, the preferred and best choice would be for Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint to reunite for more Harry Potter movies. Still, no single actor, even Daniel Radcliffe, is bigger than the Harry Potter franchise itself, as recasting Grindelwald with Mads Mikkelsen has shown. It's unlikely that with Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore disappointing that Warner Bros. Discovery will greenlight Fantastic Beasts 4 & 5, but the value of the Harry Potter franchise is too great for the studio to leave it in limbo. It’s a question of when, not if, more Harry Potter movies are made, with or without Daniel Radcliffe.

Next: Harry Potter & The Cursed Child Movie Is Better Than Fantastic Beasts 4