This story originally appeared on Them.
Nicholas Hoult is not headed to Hogwarts after all.
The Juror #2 actor, who had previously been attached to star as the vain Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Gilderoy Lockhart in the upcoming second season of HBO’s Harry Potter reboot series, has dropped out and been replaced by Game of Thrones actor Kit Harington, according to Deadline.
Hoult reportedly dropped out due to scheduling conflicts. According to Deadline, filming for the second season would have had to shift due to two pre-existing projects on the actor’s docket — and Harrington was reportedly “excited” to take over the role.
Harrington also played Lockhart in Harry Potter: The Full-Cast Audio Editions, which was released last year and included voice talent such as Hugh Laurie, Riz Ahmed, and Cush Jumbo. Harrington spoke about his love for the book when the audio version in which he starred came out.
“I read it, and like so many generations, I was entranced, and then I was a huge fan all through my teenage years,” he said at the time, per Deadline.
Backlash to Hoult’s initial casting news, which dropped on August 12, was swift, with many people lambasting the actor for attaching himself to the project given Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling’s ardent anti-transgender views and his own LGBTQ+ following.
“Be so in demand you can literally pick any role yet decide to star in a dogshit reboot tv show led by a transphobic bigot,” one person wrote on X at the time, as Them previously noted. Hoult’s casting came in the same week as actor Bel Powley, who is set to play abusive aunt Petunia Dursley, said that she "strongly disagrees” with Rowling’s beliefs when it comes to trans people.
Hoult’s casting also unleashed a wave of Hollywood talent sharing that they had, in fact, turned down the opportunity to be a part of the Harry Potter reboot. Shortly after Hoult was announced, queer director Ally Pankiw posted screenshots of a text exchange with a member of her team in which she wrote “Absolutely f**king not! lol. (But thank you for asking)” when asked about potentially taking meetings for potential directorial opportunities on the series.
Following Pankiw’s disclosure, director Kate Herron, who has previously helmed episodes of Loki and Sex Education, replied to Pankiw’s post sharing that she, too, had turned down the gig.
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