Snape, McGonagall, Hagrid and more: HBO reveals the Hogwarts teaching staff

14 April 2025 will stay in the calendar for a good while. HBO released the names of the Hogwarts professors for the new series — and the internet had the day it deserved.

Let’s go through them.

Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape. The British actor from Black Mirror and I May Destroy You will play the most complex and beloved professor in the series. The casting generated debate — as any Snape casting always will. Alan Rickman created a version that lives permanently in the imagination of an entire generation, and that’s a burden any actor taking this role will carry. The question is what Essiedu does with it — and the production’s bet is that he has what it takes.

Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall. Dame Maggie Smith defined McGonagall for a generation. McTeer, with her work in Jessica Jones and Ozark, brings Shakespearean gravitas to the role. It’s a casting that inspires immediate confidence.

Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid. The Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz star revealed he had been “trying to manifest” the role — watching all the films back to back while writing the word “Hagrid” 7,000 times. He also learned to knit specifically for the character. That level of dedication before even being confirmed says everything about how he’ll approach it.

Rounding out the faculty: Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell and Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch.

It’s a cast to envy. The production is clearly not cutting corners on talent — and every new name increases the sense that this series could be something genuinely extraordinary.

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