All aboard the Hogwarts express! Over the course of 10 years, the stars of Harry Potter brought magic, mischief and more to millions of fans around the world.
Based on the series of seven books by J.K. Rowling, stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint captured the hearts of viewers between 2001 and 2011. The eight movies raked in more than $7.5 billion worldwide, making it the third-highest-grossing film franchise of all time behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars. Though their time at Hogwarts has come to an end, the power trio will always cherish the years they spent together.
“We are all very busy, off doing different things and rarely seem to cross [paths],” Radcliffe said during a Q&A with Heat Radio in August 2019. “But you know, there is always this thing and this experience that will forever bond us. We’ll certainly always have that.”
The Hogwarts students grew up in the spotlight, which didn’t come without its challenges. In the December 2019 cover story of British Vogue, Watson opened up about struggling to separate her time as Hermione Granger from her own identity.
“It’s so bizarre and otherworldly, what happened to me,” she told the publication at the time. “There’s been moments when everything just got so big, where I almost had vertigo on my own life and it’s got so big I felt disconnected. … There’s a whole existence and identity that I have, actually, that’s really important and weighted and solid that has nothing to do with any of that.”
Though each of the franchise’s stars has taken their careers in new directions since the final movie hit theaters, they still have plenty of love for one another. Bonnie Wright, who played Ginny Weasley throughout the series, gushed over her colleagues while speaking to Us Weekly exclusively in February 2020.
“It’s amazing,” she said of the moments she’s shared with her cast members over the years, both on and off screen. “Very powerful.”
Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter)
Radcliffe portrayed the titular role in all eight of the franchise’s blockbuster films and later moved onto work on smaller-scale projects, including 2013’s Horns and 2016’s Swiss Army Man. He has also starred on Broadway in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, The Cripple of Inishmaan and The Lifespan of a Fact. In 2020, he appeared alongside Ellie Kemper in Netflix’s interactive special, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend.
Emma Watson (Hermione Granger)
After Harry Potter came to an end in 2011, the British actress took on roles in My Week with Marilyn (2011), The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) and The Bling Ring (2013). In May 2014, Watson graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in English literature. Five years later, she tugged at viewers’ heartstrings as Meg March in Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of Little Women.
Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley)
Grint was Radcliffe’s right-hand man for a decade, playing Ron Weasley with an expert balance of emotion and comic relief. His more recent roles have been a departure from the Harry Potter universe, including World War II-inspired Into the White (2012) and biographical drama CBGB (2013). Grint welcomed his first child with girlfriend Georgia Groome in May 2020.
Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley)
Following her time at Hogwarts, Wright transitioned from screen to stage and made her London debut in The Moment of Truth in 2013. The next year, she participated in a celebrity charity spinoff of The Great British Bake Off. Wright was previously engaged to Harry Potter costar Jamie Campbell Bower, but the pair called it quits in 2011 after six months
Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy)
Besides his work in the Harry Potter series, Felton is best known for 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes and 2017’s Feed, written and produced by Troian Bellisario. He also appeared on the CW’s The Flash in 2016 and 2017. Felton previously dated stunt assistant Jade Olivia Gordon, whom he met while filming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, from 2008 to 2016.
Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom)
The Brit portrayed unexpected hero Neville Longbottom in each of the Harry Potter films, making a triumphant final appearance in the Battle of Hogwarts in the eighth movie. He later played Jamie Bradley in BBC One’s The Syndicate and Corporal Gordon “Towerblock” House in the BBC Three comedy drama Bluestone 42. In May 2018, he married Angela Jones.
Ralph Fiennes (Voldemort)
Already an established name before joining the Harry Potter cast, Fiennes starred in 1993’s Schindler’s List, 2002’s Maid in Manhattan and 2008’s In Bruges. When Harry Potter came to an end, he moved onto another major franchise, playing Gareth Mallory / M in the James Bond series.
Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall)
The dame has had an impressive career in theater, film and television — and is one of the most recognizable stars in the U.K. From 2010 to 2015, she starred as Lady Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey. The role earned her three Emmys and the third Golden Globe of her career.
Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood)
The Irish actress rose to prominence after playing quirky outcast Luna Lovegood and later lent her voice to a number of Harry Potter tie-in video games. In 2012, she appeared in the final popular web musical from StarKid Productions, A Very Potter Senior Year. Lynch joined the cast of Dancing With the Stars for season 27 in 2018, finishing in third place with partner Keo Motsepe.
Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange)
The Oscar nominee has starred in independent movies and major blockbusters alike and was cast to play Princess Margaret in Netflix’s The Crown in 2018. Before splitting from longtime partner Tim Burton in 2014, she appeared in several of his films, including Big Fish (2003), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) and Alice in Wonderland (2010). The exes share son Billy Raymond Burton and daughter Nell Burton.
Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy)
Other than playing Draco Malfoy’s father, Isaacs is best known for roles in The Patriot (2000), Peter Pan (2003) and Fury (2014). In 2018, he starred in a film adaptation of A. S. Byatt’s Medusa’s Ankles directed by Harry Potter costar Bonnie Wright.
Gary Oldman (Sirius Black)
Oldman made his first appearance in the Harry Potter series in its third film, the Prisoner of Azkaban, playing Harry’s godfather Sirius Black. Throughout his storied career, the actor has won an Academy Award, three BAFTAs, two Critics’ Choice Awards, a Golden Globe and a SAG Award. He has been married five times: to Lesley Manville from 1987 to 1990, Uma Thurman from 1990 to 1992, Donya Fiorentino from 1997 to 2001, Alexandra Edenborough from 2008 to 2015 and to Gisele Schmidt in 2017.
Alan Rickman (Severus Snape)
A former member of the U.K.’s Royal Shakespeare Company, Rickman made a name for himself both on the big screen and on the stage. Before portraying Hogwarts’ potions professor Severus Snape, he starred in Die Hard (1988), Love Actually (2003) and countless iconic films. Rickman died in London in January 2016, shortly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid)
Not only did Coltrane have a recurring role in the Harry Potter series, but he also became a fixture of the Bond series, starring in GoldenEye (1995) and The World Is Not Enough (1999). In 2006, the Scottish actor was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his work in entertainment.
Oliver and James Phelps (Fred and George Weasley)
For a decade, the twin actors stole scenes as Fred and George Weasley, Ron’s trouble-making older brothers. Since the final installment of the Harry Potter series hit theaters, the brothers have split time between California and the U.K.
David Thewlis (Remus Lupin)
Thewlis originally auditioned for the role of Quirinus Quirrell in the first Harry Potter film, but later made his Hogwarts debut in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Other notable credits include The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008) and Wonder Woman (2017). In 2018, he voiced the Shame Wizard on Netflix’s animated series Big Mouth.
Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore)
Knighted in 1998, the Irish-British actor is a legend of stage and screen. Gambon took over the role of Hogwarts headmaster from Richard Harris, who died after the second film was released in 2002. He has also starred in The King’s Speech (2010), Churchill’s Secret (2016) and Little Women (2017).
Katie Leung (Cho Chang)
Leung made her Harry Potter debut in the fourth movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, as Harry’s love interest. She went on to appear in the British TV miniseries One Child and made her stage debut in Wild Swans in February 2012. Five years later, she costarred with Jackie Chan and Pierce Brosnan in The Foreigner.
Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan)
The Irish actor is best known for his turn as Gryffindor’s goofiest student Seamus Finnigan, a role he held through all eight movies. In 2018, he began dating Shannon McCaffrey Quinn, and the duo confirmed that they were expecting their first child together two years later.
Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas)
After the Harry Potter series wrapped, the Brit was cast as Wes Gibbins in ABC’s acclaimed drama How to Get Away With Murder. He starred alongside Viola Davis, Jack Falahee, Aja Naomi King and more for six seasons of the Shonda Rhimes hit, which earned several Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations.
Harry Melling (Dudley Dursley)
A graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Melling appeared in five of the eight Harry Potter films as Harry’s spoiled cousin, Dudley. In 2009, Melling was almost recast after losing so much weight that he looked “unrecognizable” in the role. More recently, he worked alongside Liam Neeson in the 2018 Coen brothers’ film The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.
Fiona Shaw (Petunia Dursley)
After Harry Potter, Shaw appeared in season four of HBO’s True Blood, which aired in 2011. She later starred in the BBC’s Killing Eve, which earned her a 2019 BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actress and an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She was also nominated for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series at the 2019 Emmys for her work on Fleabag.
Richard Griffiths (Vernon Dursley)
Before his death in 2013, Griffiths was an acclaimed British entertainer, having won a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, the Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award throughout his career.
Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge)
Her turn as pesky Defense Against the Darks Arts professor Dolores Umbridge in 2007’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix earned her nominations for British Supporting Actress of the Year at the London Film Critics Circle Awards and for Best Supporting Actress at the Saturn Awards. Since then, she’s starred in Paddington (2014) and Paddington 2 (2017) and was cast to play Queen Elizabeth II in season 5 and 6 of The Crown.