Gary Oldman backs HBO Harry Potter series and recalls Alan Rickman set visits

Memories from the Hogwarts set

During an appearance at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday, Gary Oldman reflected on working alongside the late Alan Rickman across the Harry Potter film franchise. While Rickman's character, Severus Snape, was known for his cold demeanor toward Hogwarts pupils, Oldman explained that the actor displayed the opposite temperament off camera. Rickman regularly welcomed outside visitors, particularly young fans facing illness, onto the film sets during production.

He would bring them in from a school, he'd bring them in from the hospital, he'd bring friends and their kids in every single day for lunchtimes and things. He'd take kids around to tour the sets, and we'd meet them.

Oldman described Rickman as a dedicated advocate for the production environment, noting that his colleague understood the emotional weight the setting held for young visitors. Rickman, who died of pancreatic cancer on 14 January 2016, portrayed Snape throughout all eight franchise films after earlier roles in productions such as Die Hard and Truly Madly Deeply.

Oldman's perspective on the HBO adaptation

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the 68-year-old actor also assessed HBO's forthcoming television adaptation of J.K. Rowling's books. Oldman made his franchise debut as Harry Potter's godfather Sirius Black in 2004's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban before reprising the role in three subsequent instalments. Reflecting on the cinematic versions, he noted that standard running times forced filmmakers to compress extensive book plots.

We had to cut a lot, and still we could only get the films down to, like, three hours. I believe [the TV series is] gonna do it pretty much word-for-word, which I think, as a viewer, would be more satisfying.

Oldman explained that significant character detail had to be sacrificed during the film adaptations. Key narrative elements absent from the movies included the backstory of the Marauder's Map, created by Black alongside James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, and Remus Lupin. The films also omitted extended periods of Black living on the run, Neville Longbottom's visits to his incapacitated parents, and extensive details regarding Lord Voldemort's ancestry.

Production status and series casting

Oldman expressed appreciation for his time in the film series, crediting director Chris Columbus with establishing the cinematic universe and selecting the original young cast. The new television project aims to expand each book across full seasons, allowing storylines more room to develop. Filming on the first season has concluded, with the premiere scheduled for 25 December on HBO and HBO Max.

The television adaptation features a new core cast, with Dominic McLaughlin playing Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger, and Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley. The adult ensemble includes John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley, and Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid. Warwick Davis is the only confirmed returning actor from the original films, reprising his role as Professor Filius Flitwick. Sirius Black is not expected to appear until the third season, while HBO production teams have already commenced pre-production on Season 2, which adapts Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.