Harry Potter introduced viewers to a world of magic and a number of witches and wizards, some with extraordinary abilities and others not so much. Neville Longbottom, for example, stood out for his clumsiness and lack of skill with various spells, but a fan theory suggests that’s not exactly Neville’s fault. J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World saw the light in 1997 with the publishing of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the first entry in what would become a series of seven novels, culminating in 2007 with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
The books told the story of “the boy who lived” and the darkest wizard of all, Lord Voldemort, while also exploring the stories of some of Harry’s friends – such as Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger – and other enemies, like Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry Potter also introduced Neville Longbottom, a pure-blood Gryffindor student in Harry’s year who became one of his closest friends, fighting together in the Battle of Hogwarts and killing the final horcrux with Godric Gryffindor’s sword.
Neville was described and played as a clumsy, disorganized, and mediocre student, but had some truly brilliant and brave moments (such as the aforementioned decapitation of Nagini) that have made Harry Potter fans question if he truly lacked skills or if he just had the wrong materials to work with.
Harry Potter Theory: Neville Wasn’t Clumsy, He Had The Wrong Wand
In the world of Harry Potter, a wizard doesn’t choose their wand – the wand chooses the wizard. It’s a process readers and viewers witnessed along with Harry in Philosopher’s Stone, and it’s a “law” that applies to every single wizard and witch. Now, Neville used his father’s wand for years, which fans believe explains why he had so much trouble with various spells during his first years at Hogwarts. Because the wand wasn’t his and he had no connection with it, his magic was all messed up, but he excelled in other areas that didn’t require much use of a wand, such as Herbology.
Neville’s wand broke in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, prompting him to get another one – a wand that would actually choose him this time. After that, Neville’s skills improved and with that his confidence as well, which was the winning combination for a kid that lived under the shadow of his father and didn’t really get the support he needed from those around him. This would also explain why the prophecy by Sybill Trelawney presented Harry and Neville as equals: they truly are as talented as the other, sometimes in different areas (as the theory explains, Neville excelled in Herbology while Harry did so in athletics), but Neville took long to demonstrate it because he didn’t have the correct wand. This Harry Potter fan theory hasn’t been confirmed or denied by Rowling, but it offers a believable explanation on Neville’s talents and part of the prophecy.