Nicholas Hoult Drops Out of HARRY POTTER Season 2 as Kit Harington Takes Over as Gilderoy Lockhart
Just weeks after Nicholas Hoult was revealed as the actor set to play Gilderoy Lockhart in Harry Piotter Season 2, the Superman star has been forced to leave the role because of a scheduling conflict.
HBO already has his replacement, and it’s someone who knows his way around massive fantasy franchises. Kit Harington will now play the ridiculously vain Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
According to Deadline, production dates for Hoult’s scenes changed, creating a conflict with another project on his schedule. That means Hoult will no longer make the jump from playing Lex Luthor in DC Studios’ Man of Tomorrow to one of the Wizarding World’s most memorable frauds.
It’s a shame because Hoult seemed like a great choice for Lockhart. The character would have given him an opportunity to play a very different kind of antagonist than Lex Luthor while also tapping back into the comedy chops he showed throughout The Great.
Harington, however, is a much more unexpected choice, and it’ll be interesting to see. Of course, most viewers know Harington as Jon Snow from Game of Thrones. Lockhart is practically the opposite of that character. He’s flamboyant, narcissistic, obsessed with his celebrity status, and convinced that everyone should be just as impressed with him as he is with himself.
Seeing Harington make that transformation should be interesting, especially if HBO goes all-in and gives him Lockhart’s signature blond hair.
There’s also a cool connection between Harington and the character that makes his casting more than just an HBO fantasy reunion. He’s already played Gilderoy Lockhart.
Harington previously voiced the character in Harry Potter: The Full-Cast Audio Editions, specifically the adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for Audible. Several performers involved with those productions had previously appeared elsewhere in the Wizarding World.
Lockhart arrives at Hogwarts in Chamber of Secrets as the school’s newest Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He’s a celebrated author and supposed adventurer with an impressive collection of stories about his heroic exploits.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and the rest of Hogwarts eventually discover there’s quite a bit more going on with him than the public persona suggests.
It’s a role that Kenneth Branagh memorably played in the 2002 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets movie, so Harington will have plenty of room to create his own version for the HBO series.
Harry Potter Season 1 is scheduled to premiere this Christmas on HBO, but work on Season 2 is already moving forward. Harington is the first major new casting announcement tied to the second season, which will adapt Chamber of Secrets.
Hoult, meanwhile, remains busy with DC. He’s reprising his role as Lex Luthor in Man of Tomorrow, continuing the version of the villain he introduced opposite David Corenswet’s Superman.
With Season 2 of Harry Potter preparing to move into production, more casting announcements should be coming soon. Chamber of Secrets introduces several important characters who weren’t part of Harry’s first year at Hogwarts, so Harington likely won’t be the only recognizable name joining the series.
It’s certainly strange to imagine Jon Snow transforming into one of the Wizarding World’s most hilariously self-obsessed celebrities, but that’s also what makes the casting interesting.