Why is HBO’s Harry Potter cast announcement sparking fan outrage?

On Monday, HBO announced the cast for the upcoming TV adaptation of the beloved Harry Potter series, and fans are not loving it. The show’s star-studded line-up includes John Lithgow as Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Professor Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Professor Severus Snape, Nick Frost as Hogwarts gamekeeper and groundskeeper Rubeus Hagrid, Luke Thallon as the stuttering and meek Professor Quirinus Quirrell, and Paul Whitehouse as Hogwarts caretaker Argus Filch.

“We’re delighted to have such extraordinary talent onboard, and we can’t wait to see them bring these beloved characters to new life,” said Francesca Gardiner, showrunner and executive producer and Mark Mylod, director of multiple episodes and executive producer in a joint statement.

While the fans are somewhat satisfied with the casting, majority of Potterheads are voicing their disapproval over one particular character – Paapa Essiedu as Snape. Essiedu, of Ghanaian heritage, was only speculated to play the character before the studio confirmed the casting and he has been getting hate since the rumours first emerged.

Fans are upset that Snape, who has been described in the books as pale with sallow skin, will not be portrayed in the series as such. Under the assumption that the series is attempting to be “inclusive” in the modern era of cinematic art, Potterheads have taken to social media to express their frustration.

One user brought up the topic of “race-swapping”, calling the move “ridiculous”. 

Another popular opinion making rounds on the internet is that actor Adam Driver would have been an ideal choice for Snape, a fan-favourite suggestion that has long been talked about.

Others were more accepting of the cast decision, and only set the expectation that the series stays true to the book. 

As a result of the heavy backlash, HBO disabled the comments in their Instagram post announcing the cast, prompting fans to react to the news on the next post. “If you can’t handle the feedback of the people, who are you making the shows for? Not the people it seems,” one user wrote, while another commented, “What’s even the point of making this series if you clearly don’t care about what the fans think? Don’t be surprised when a huge part of the fandom rejects it.”

Based on J.K. Rowling’s book franchise, Harry Potter was adapted into a film series that covered all seven books across eight films that ran for a decade from 2002 to 2011. The film has a largely white cast, with a few international supporting characters, and a famously non-American cast. Rowling had earlier laid down a strict rule that all the characters from her book should be played by British actors to avoid American dominance, but it seems that the writer may give leeway.