The world of Harry Potter is just as popular and loved by fans as it is fantastical and mysterious, which is all thanks to the works that author JK Rowling has done with the series, leading it to become an entire franchise, both in the literary media as well as in the world of cinema, where it stands today as one of the most iconic film franchises in history.
Coming back to the films, the things that made the cinematic universe of Harry Potter so amazing were the iconic characters and set pieces that are engraved in the minds of the audience, may they be new or old. But despite such a memorable cast, it seems like the author didn’t like one of them, more specifically, the cast for Dumbledore.
JK Rowling Called Michael Gambon A Hippe
More than the story, what most of the audience members might remember from the world of Harry Potter, especially when talking about the films, will be the characters brought to life by different stars from the industry. By far, one of the most iconic among them has to be the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Albus Dumbledore played by Michael Gambon. Although the star gave a stellar performance, one that would last generations, author JK Rowling believed that his depiction of the character was like a hippie.
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In a past interview with uInterview, Gambon, along with his Late co-star Robbie Coltrane, who was popular for playing the role of Hagrid in the franchise, were talking about what a stellar performer their young co-star Daniel Radcliffe was as the titular protagonist of the franchise. Here, The King’s Speech star recalled his interaction with Rowling when he was chosen, where the author wrote him a note, saying that he looked like a typical hippie, which Gambon took as a compliment. He said:
“They rang me up and said, ‘Will you do it?’ Like any other job I said, ‘Sure,’ Then you find yourself in the middle of this thing. When I took over, I was very anxious. I got a note from J.K. Rowling. She just said, ‘He seems like a bit of a hippie,’ which I thought was good, she didn’t seem to mind that.”
Therefore, with that interesting remark that wasn’t intended to demean him, the actor went on to create the image of the iconic Professor Dumbledore that we all came to know and love.
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How Michael Gambon Got The Role Of Albus Dumbledore
Before Gambon inherited the name of Albus Dumbledore, the part was played by another legendary actor Richard Harris, who tragically passed away after filming Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets. Even then, Gambon was not the top consideration, that had to be Sir Ian McKellen, who played Gandalf in the masterpiece The Lord of The Rings franchise.
But the star rejected the offer since Harris had informed him that while he may be a talented star, he wasn’t passionate enough to do the role of Dumbledore justice. Therefore, in good conscience, Sir McKellen denied the offer, which eventually went to Gambon.
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Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone, streaming on Max.
Source: uInterview
