HBO CEO Casey Bloys has confirmed that production for the upcoming Harry Potter television series has a “serious security team” after at least one cast member revealed they have received death threats.
Paapa Essiedu has said that following his casting as Professor Snape, he received racist messages telling him: “Quit or I’ll murder you” or “I’m going to come to your house and kill you.”
When the 35-year-old actor’s role in the production was announced last April, some online commenters claimed that he shouldn’t have been cast as the fictional potions professor because he was written as white.
Asked by Variety whether he anticipated that kind of reaction, Bloys responded: “With all actors on any kind of big IP shows — and this is obviously one of those where you’ve got, you know, passionate fans, people with a lot of opinions — it can get scary in places.”
He continued: “So for any show like that, we anticipated it and tried to have training, you know, best practices in terms of social media and how to handle it. And obviously, we’ve got a serious security team. So unfortunately, it was something that we thought might happen and we just try to be as careful as we can.”
Bloys also stated that the show has not yet cast its Voldemort, despite mounting online speculation linking Tilda Swinton with the role. Cillian Murphy definitively denied claims he would play the villain.
Essiedu has said that while he’s “pretty sure” he’s not going to be murdered despite the online threats — a comment he caveated could “age badly” — he maintained that “nobody should have to encounter this for doing their job”.
“Many people put their lives on the line in their work. I’m playing a wizard in Harry Potter. And I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t affect me emotionally,” he said.
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Shortly after Essiedu’s casting was announced, the actor was among the hundreds of TV and film professionals who signed a letter calling for industry action on trans rights.
In the last six years, JK Rowling has repeatedly come under fire for various comments about gender, with many, including stars of the Potter film adaptations, accusing her of transphobia.
After Essiedu’s appearance as a signatory on the letter, an “insider” told MailOnline that Rowling would “not be bothered one iota by Essiedu’s decision – and wouldn’t dream of intervening to get him sacked, despite being heavily involved in the project.”
The Harry Potter series is being filmed now and will premiere in 2027.
Essiedu has signed on to the series for ten years and told The Times it was a “big commitment.” “I’ll be 45 by the time I finish,” he said, “and I know my life is going to change in a big way, but I have to just surrender to that. I could have children by the end of this.”
