First Photo of Dominic McLaughlin in Costume as Harry Potter Revealed as HBO Confirms Start of Production

HBO’s new Harry Potter TV series is finally starting to take shape. The company has officially started filming the show at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in the UK, and fans just got their first look at the young actor who will play Harry himself.

Dominic McLaughlin has been revealed as the new Harry Potter, and HBO shared a photo of him wearing his Hogwarts robes for the first time.

Along with this news, HBO also announced more actors joining the cast. According to the studio, Rory Wilmot will play Neville Longbottom, Amos Kitson will play Harry’s spoiled cousin Dudley Dursley, Louise Brealey will play flying teacher Madam Hooch, and Anton Lesser will appear as Ollivander, the wand maker.

HBO’s plan for the series is to stay close to the books. Each of J.K. Rowling’s original novels will be turned into its own season. This way, the story will have more time to develop and include more details from the books. The show will start with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which has nearly all of its main roles already cast.

Some well-known names have been chosen for important characters. John Lithgow, an Emmy winner, will play Albus Dumbledore. Janet McTeer will appear as Professor McGonagall. Paapa Essiedu will take on the role of Severus Snape, while Nick Frost will play Hagrid.

The main trio of young wizards includes Dominic McLaughlin as Harry, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger, and Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley. Other characters like Molly Weasley, Draco Malfoy, and Lucius Malfoy are also cast. Katherine Parkinson will play Molly, Lox Pratt will be Draco, and Johnny Flynn will play Lucius Malfoy. More names like Leo Earley, Alessia Leoni, Sienna Moosah, Bel Powley, Daniel Rigby, and Bertie Carvel will take on supporting roles.

Stage actor Luke Thallon has been cast as Professor Quirrell, who teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts in the first book. Paul Whitehouse will play Argus Filch, the grumpy caretaker of Hogwarts.

The show is being led by Francesca Gardiner, who serves as both showrunner and executive producer. Mark Mylod is directing several episodes and is also an executive producer. J.K. Rowling is working behind the scenes too, helping as an executive producer along with Neil Blair and Ruth Kenley-Letts from Brontë Film and TV. David Heyman, who produced the original movie series, is back as well.

HBO hasn’t said when the show will be ready for viewers, but filming is now underway. Fans of the books and movies can look forward to a new version of the Harry Potter story, made for television, as confirmed by HBO itself.

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