One of the most underrated characters in the Harry Potter universe has to be Remus Lupin. He was introduced in the third installment in a wider capacity, but then retreated to the sidelines for most of his following appearances. This led to Lupin’s characterization being quite limited, especially in the movies.
There have been revelations about this character since the Harry Potter novel series ended, as well as facts about him that were shown in the books; a majority of which didn’t get their time to shine on the big screen. So, if you’re a Lupin fan who hasn’t read the books or related materials, then here's a little more of his backstory.
He Used To Live With James
Almost everything about James and Remus’ friendship from the books was removed in the movies, making it obvious that they would exclude this fact; something that wasn’t even included in the novels. J.K. Rowling revealed at one point that Lupin had been given shelter by James after their Hogwarts days.
Since no-one would give him a job as he was a werewolf, Lupin was supported by James. This included giving him a place to live, as well as providing Remus with financial backing. The movies barely ever touched on their school friendship, let alone something as big as this.
Sirius Didn't Quite Trust Him
The Shrieking Shack scene in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’s film adaption was extremely rushed, to the point that it was rather hard to believe how quickly Harry’s mind changed over Sirius’ innocence. Another part left out here was when Sirius admitted to Remus that he had distrusted him back in the days of the war.
Rather than suspect Peter Pettigrew, Sirius began suspecting Remus for being a spy for Voldemort, owing to Voldemort promising werewolves free rein under his command. Once they were reunited in the Shrieking Shack, Sirius apologized to Remus for ever suspecting him, which was met with swift forgiveness from Lupin.
The Identity Of His Killer
In both versions of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Lupin’s death scene wasn’t shown, because Harry wasn’t there to witness it. In the movie, though, we didn’t get so much as a hint over what (or who) caused Lupin’s passing.He was last seen with Tonks, where they reached out to each other once Voldemort destroyed the barrier around the school.
In the novel, it was implied that Remus’ killer was Antonin Dolohov, the man he was last seen duelling with. J.K. Rowling later confirmed that it was in fact Dolohov who took Lupin’s life. The film made it appear as if Tonks and Lupin had died at the same time, as their hands were reaching for each other even in death.
Romance Angle With Tonks
Tonks’ role was basically immaterial in the movies, with her appearance in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix being nothing notable, and she only had a scene or two in the next movie. A big deviation from the novels here was that Lupin and Tonks were already a couple in the sixth film, something that was actually addressed right at the end of the sixth book.
They had a romantic angle in the novel, where Tonks and Remus were shown to be struggling for the duration of the story. Remus was reluctant to marry her, because of their age difference and social class. This was handwaved away in the movies, and the two were implied to be in a steady relationship (perhaps married) by the sixth film's beginning.
Role In The Bullying Of Snape
We don’t know for sure if Lupin also took part in bullying Snape along with Sirius, James, and Peter, but he did form part of the group. In the movies, Snape’s torment was only briefly shown, and his hatred over Lupin wasn’t very clear.
The fifth novel had shown Harry ask Lupin why he didn’t react to James and Sirius bullying Snape, and Lupin answered that he’d been too fearful that his friends would’ve left him had he went against their wishes. He also claimed that he intended to have a good influence on his friends and their behavior. The movie, by contrast, made it seem that Remus liked taking the mickey out of Snape, as evidenced when he had the Boggart Snape dress up as Neville’s grandmother.
His Grown-up Son
If you’d just seen the movies and never read the books, then you’d be forgiven for not knowing that Lupin and Tonks had a kid at all, until very late. It was only when Harry resurrected Lupin’s spirit in the Forbidden Forest that there was a mention of Ted Lupin, and here Lupin only touched on his regret regarding his son's future.
The book had shown Remus and Tonks talk about their son during the Battle of Hogwarts, and his spirit had displayed definite sadness over never getting to know his child. The movie almost outright eliminated Lupin’s child, and he wasn’t seen in the epilogue (unlike in the book).
Being One Of The Marauders
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’s movie adaption completely relied on the viewer having knowledge of the book’s events to know who the Marauders were. The film showed Lupin mysteriously aware of how the map works, but never went deeper into how he knew of it.
The Marauders themselves were never identified in the film, and one would wonder who the heck Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs were once the movie was over. It wasn’t mentioned that Lupin was Moony in the following films either, meaning his history as a Marauder was left out of the film series.
Trying To Abandon His Wife
Tonks and Lupin came across as a pretty picture-perfect couple in the three films they were shown as a couple. We saw how supportive Tonks was of Lupin’s untenable situation in Half-Blood Prince, and both installments of Deathly Hallows.
However, the films left out the fact that Lupin couldn't comprehend Tonks being so accepting. One of the chapters in the Deathly Hallows novel shows that Lupin planned on abandoning his wife and unborn child to run off and join Harry and his friends. Lupin was too scared of the repercussions of a werewolf having a child with a human, and attempted to desert them to free them of any shame. It took Harry to convince Lupin to return home.
His Life Of Poverty
Lupin seemed to have magically turned up on the Hogwarts Express in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and his circumstances before showing up were unclear even in the novels. However, he did state to Harry that Dumbledore was kind enough to have offered him a job when he was destitute
The movies didn’t make mention Remus’ occupation before and after Prisoner of Azkaban, much less showing his life in poverty as revealed by J.K. Rowling. Lupin was living in a semi-derelict state, and had been this way for over a decade since James’ death. It was Dumbledore who tracked him down in a cottage in Yorkshire and convinced him to become a teacher.
Taking the Wolfsbane Potion
Of course, the only reason he was convinced to come to Hogwarts to teach was because Dumbledore promised Lupin an endless supply of the Wolfsbane Potion. In the film, the potion went unmentioned until Sirius asked Remus if he’d taken it while in the Shrieking Shack – which was weird since Remus and Sirius were said to have not even been contact before reuniting in the shack.
The novel had stated in great detail how the Wolfsbane Potion mitigated the effects of the ravenous werewolf Remus would become in the full moon. There was an entire subplot about the potion and Lupin’s status as a werewolf, but the film omitted this in favor of speeding the main plot along.