Summary

• Richard Harris initially portrayed Albus Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies but was replaced due to his declining health. He tragically passed away from Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 72.
• Michael Gambon took over the role of Dumbledore and played him throughout the rest of the Harry Potter film series. He brought his own unique interpretation to the character.
• There have been other recastings in the Harry Potter series, including Tom Riddle, Griphook, and Helena Ravenclaw. These changes were made due to various reasons such as age constraints and creative decisions.

Franchise mainstay Albus Dumbledore, played by Michael Gambon in six Harry Potter movies, and Jude Law in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them spin-offs, was initially portrayed by Irish actor Richard Harris in the first two Harry Potter movies, but what was the reason behind the Dumbledore actor change? When the role of Albus Dumbledore was initially being cast ahead of 2001's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, actors Patrick McGoohan and Sean Connery were targeted for the part. The key role eventually went to Harris, and the actor was expected to play the part throughout the entire film franchise.

Harries initially hesitated to take the role due to his health, but the actor was encouraged by his young granddaughter. Harris perfectly embodied the exceptional wizard and Harry's mentor in the franchise's first two installments. Before the release of Chamber of Secrets in November 2002, Harris' health took a turn for the worse. After being hospitalized with an illness, Harris was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. He remained upbeat and told Alfonso Cuarón, the director of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, not to recast his part, but the Dumbledore actor change shortly followed.

Why Harry Potter Recast Dumbledore

The answer to anyone questioning "why did they change the Dumbledore actor?" isn't a happy one. Despite his hopes to return as Dumbledore, the actor sadly passed away from Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 72, a few months after asking Cuarón to hold the role. The Harry Potter film series was then tasked with recasting the role of Dumbledore in the hopes that the next actor could stick around for the remainder of the franchise. Harris' tenure as Dumbledore was iconic and tragically brief. Recasting the role was a delicate process that required a great deal of care and attention to ensure the cinematic change was as smooth as possible.

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The Process Of Recasting Dumbledore For The Harry Potter Franchise

Cuarón and the rest of the Harry Potter crew spent months trying to refill the role of Dumbledore for Prisoner of Azkaban — and beyond. Several popular and established actors almost played Albus Dumbledore, including Christopher Lee, who was a top pick but couldn't commit due to scheduling conflicts. Fellow Lord of the Rings star Ian McKellen was also considered, but he felt uncomfortable taking the role due to his rocky relationship with Harris. After Peter O'Toole's age and health status became worrisome, the producers went with Michael Gambon as Harris' official replacement as Dumbledore.

Gambon, another Irish-born actor, played Dumbledore for the remaining six films in the Harry Potter series. His portrayal became one of the actor's best-known roles, but his version of the character was drastically different from his predecessor. This initially threw many viewers off, but his prominence and longevity in the franchise won fans over. The actor decided early on that he wouldn't try to copy Harris' performance and, instead, made Dumbledore his own. The circumstances were unfortunate, but Gambon stepped up in a time of need and gave the beloved book character a special on-screen counterpart, right up to Dumbledore's iconic death in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Why Michael Gambon Wasn't In The Harry Potter Reunion

Despite having taken on the iconic role of Dumbledore, Michael Gambon was conspicuous in his absence in the reunion special, Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts. Sadly, it's believed that Gambon's absence was due to his poor health too, as the actor reported in 2015 that he had difficulty with memory loss, which was affecting his ability to act. This hasn't been officially confirmed, and no official reason was given for Gambon's absence in Return to Hogwarts. Still, the lack of Dumbledore in the Harry Potter Reunion was something that disappointed many fans.

Jude Law’s Dumbledore Is A New Focal Point Of Fantastic Beasts

Jude Law's iteration of the younger Dumbledore has become the axis upon which the Fantastic Beasts franchise spins. Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) remains the lens through which the audience experiences the 1920s wizarding world. Still, the conflict between Dumbledore and Grindelwald, his lover/mortal enemy (played by Johnny Depp/Mads Mikkelsen) is the focus of the narrative. Newt is still important, but the Fantastic Beasts franchise is now the Dumbledore show. While this does make the scenes with Newt feel a little like watching Harry Potter entirely from Ron's perspective, it's given many fans what they want – more exploration into Albus Dumbledore.

Jude Law's portrayal of Albus Dumbledore also finally explores one reason he's so important not just in the context of the Wizarding World, but as a fictional character in a big-budget, family-oriented, multimillion-dollar franchise Hollywood blockbuster: Dumbledore's sexuality. Grindelwald wasn't just an evil wizard to be put down like Voldemort — he was Dumbledore's former lover. While some controversy exists in both the Harry Potter fanbase and LGBTQ+ communities about how much was/is not shown of their relationship in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, the movie did finally acknowledge on the big screen that Dumbledore is gay and that he and Grindelwald were romantically involved.

Credence Barebone’s True Origins Change How We See The Dumbledore Family

Fantastic Beasts 3 contained a significant plot twist: Albus isn't the only Dumbledore with secrets, because Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) is a secret Dumbledore. As Albus discovered, Credence Barebone is actually Aurelius Dumbledore, the son of Aberforth Dumbledore (Richard Coyle), Albus' brother. This makes Credence/Aurelius Dumbledore's long-lost nephew, and the three Dumbledore men coming to terms with this truth is a vital theme of the movie's final act.

While it does end somewhat happily, with Credence/Aurelius and Aberforth reconnecting, it opens up many questions. Aberforth is mentioned only once in the books. Still, in no Harry Potter medium has Dumbledore ever spoken of a nephew, much less one with ties to evil wizards like Grindelwald and an uncanny resemblance to Harry Potter's Severus Snape. If Fantastic Beasts returns for a 4th and 5th installment as planned, audiences will probably be seeing a lot more of Jude Law's Albus Dumbledore and what happened to make him the wise, stoic, fiery man portrayed by Michael Harris and Michael Gambon by the time Harry Potter sets foot in Hogwarts.

Will Dumbledore Be Recast In The Future Of Harry Potter?

There have been rumors about the possibility of a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie — which could mean another Dumbledore recast in the future. The Cursed Child started as a wildly popular stage play, which hit London theaters on July 31st, 2016. The book itself was released on the same day. The play was not penned directly by J.K. Rowling, but an author named Jack Thorne. However, it's based on an original story crafted by Rowling, John Tiffany, and Thorne.

The Cursed Child follows the second generation of Harry Potter; namely, Harry's son Albus Severus, and his best friend Scorpius Malfoy, as they take a journey through time. The four-act production received rave reviews from critics, and it was a great addition to the Harry Potter universe, despite some plot holes here and there. There is now some consideration that the continuation of Harry's story could be made into a movie. In fact, Christopher Columbus has expressly stated that he'd be interested in creating a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child adaptation.

What this means for Albus Dumbledore could be a possible recasting. In The Cursed Child, Harry converses with the portrait of Albus Dumbledore. Michael Gambon could potentially return to play the portrait, but it's more likely there would be another Dumbledore recasting. The likelihood of a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie is slim, though. Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe expressed that he doesn't want to jump back into his Harry Potter role just yet and needs some time away from the part to further his career as an actor.

Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have also stated that they aren't quite ready to return to the HP world. So far, the only actor who has been outspokenly on board with reprising their role is Tom Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy in the series. So, while The Cursed Child could happen, it might not be coming down the pipeline any time soon, meaning a Dumbledore recast could be on the horizon for the movie.

Dumbledore Was Far From The Only Harry Potter Actor Change

The Dumbledore actor change isn't the only recasting, and there have been several casting changes in Harry Potter. Other notable recastings include Tom Riddle, with Christian Coulson in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets being replaced by Frank Dillane in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince due to age concerns. Griphook, initially played by Verne Troyer (with Warwick Davis voicing the character) in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, saw Davis assuming the full portrayal by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Helena Ravenclaw transitioned from Nina Young in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix to Kelly Macdonald in Deathly Hallows Part 2.

The Fat Lady guarding Gryffindor Tower was another switch, moving from Elizabeth Spriggs in the first film to Dawn French by the third. Even the overarching antagonist of the series, Voldemort, had a major recasting, Richard Bremmer and Ian Hart were replaced by Ralph Fiennes. The reasons for these changes were multifaceted: age constraints, scheduling conflicts, or creative decisions. In the case of Voldemort, Bremmer has speculated that producers wanted a bigger star in the role. These shifts, while sometimes jarring for die-hard fans, underscore the challenges of adapting a long-spanning, beloved book series into a film saga, but Warner Bros. impressively pulled off Harry Potter despite the casting changes.

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  Harry Potter

  Summary:

  Harry Potter is a multimedia franchise about an orphaned boy who enrolls at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. Adapted from the novels, Harry Potter is an eight-episode film saga that follows the journey of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they navigate the tricky world of growing up, school life, and magic. Starting from year one and moving to their seventh year, the films chronicle the students' time at Hogwarts while unfurling a sinister plot that centers around the unsuspecting Harry. With the return of the dark wizard, Voldemort, the students and professors at Hogwarts will fight to carry on as the world around them may change forever. Harry Potter has expanded beyond the world of its films and novels with several video games, a spin-off film series titled Fantastic Beasts, and more.

  Assistant Director :

  Chris Carreras

  Budget:

  $125 million

  Cast:

  Robbie Coltrane, Rupert Grint, Richard Harris, Daniel Radcliffe, Maggie Smith, Emma Watson

  Cinematographer:

  John Seale

  Director:

  Chris Columbus

  Distributor :

  Warner Bros.

  Franchise:

  Harry Potter

  Genres:

  Family, Adventure, Fantasy

  Producer:

  David Heyman

  Production Company:

  Warner Bros., Heyday Films, 1492 Pictures

  Rating:

  PG

  Runtime:

  152 minutes

  Sequel:

  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

  Sfx Supervisor:

  Nick Davis

  Writers:

  Steve Kloves

  Website:

  https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/harry-potter-complete-8-film-collection

  Story By:

  J.K. Rowling

  Characters By:

  J.K. Rowling

  Main Characters :

  Harry Potter, Hermoine Granger, Ron Weasley, Albus Dumbledore, Hagrid, Professor McGonagall, Severus Snape, Draco Malfoy