As HBO's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets begins taking shape, three more key characters have been cast for Season 2.
As we first reported on SFFGazette.com, the premium cable network has confirmed that Tom Riddle, the young Lord Voldemort, will be played by Billy Barratt (Bring Her Back, Invasion). He'll play Voldemort in flashbacks to his time at Hogwarts and as the teenager who battles Harry deep beneath Hogwarts after being restored to "life" by his diary.
Barratt is the first actor to be cast as Voldemort in the HBO series, as there's still no word on who is taking on the role of the adult Dark Lord. His face is expected to appear at the end of The Philosopher's Stone when Professor Quirrell's turban is removed, but Voldemort doesn't appear in full until The Goblet of Fire (Season 4).
The now-19-year-old won an International Emmy Award for Best Actor aged 13 for his role in the TV movie Responsible Child.
17-year-old BAFTA winner Lenny Rush (Am I Being Unreasonable?, Doctor Who) has been cast as Dobby, the House-Elf who becomes one of the Boy Wizard's closest allies—and something of a nuisance—in The Chamber of Secrets and beyond. He'll presumably be brought to life with VFX.
Finally, Harry Potter has found its new Ginny Weasley. Bonnie Hill (The Six Triple Eight, Girl Troop versus Aliens) is set to take over the role from Gracie Cochrane, who portrayed Ginny in Season 1 before leaving the series due to what were described as "unforeseen circumstances."
In the Harry Potter movies, Christian Coulson played Tom Riddle in The Chamber of Secrets. Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Frank Dillane took over the role in later movies for flashbacks. Toby Jones was the voice of Dobby, while Bonnie Wright was Ginny Weasley.
This news comes after Game of Thrones star Kit Harington replaced Superman's Nicholas Hoult as Hogwarts' new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart. The next big role to cast will surely be the voice of the giant spider, Aragog, along with Arthur Weasley and Moning Myrtle.
You can see each new addition to Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in the Instagram gallery below.
"There is nothing special about Harry Potter - at least that's what his Aunt Petunia always says," reads the synopsis. "On his 11th birthday, a letter of admittance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry opens up a hidden world for Harry: one of fun, friendship and magic. But with this new adventure comes great risk as Harry is forced to face a dangerous enemy from his past."
The main cast of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone includes Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger, Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley, John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, Rory Wilmot as Neville Longbottom, and Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy.
Rounding out the supporting cast are Daniel Rigby as Vernon Dursley, Bel Powley as Petunia Dursley, Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch, Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell, Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley, Amos Kitson as Dudley Dursley, Gracie Cochrane as Ginny Weasley, Leigh Gill as Griphook, and Anton Lesser as Garrick Ollivander.
The series, based on J.K. Rowling’s beloved books, is written and executive-produced by Francesca Gardiner. Mark Mylod will executive-produce and direct multiple episodes of the series for HBO in association with Brontë Film and TV and Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive-produced by J.K. Rowling, Neil Blair, and Ruth Kenley-Letts of Brontë Film and TV, and David Heyman of Heyday Films.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone premieres on HBO Max this Christmas.