With its latest announcement, Max’s upcoming HBO reboot of Harry Potter has already broken one of original author J.K. Rowling’s strictest rules: not casting Americans. That’s right, after weeks of speculation, Emmy Award-winning (and American) actor John Lithgow has confirmed he is onboard to portray Professor Albus Dumbledore in the series, which will base each of its seasons on one of the original seven books. Lithgow confirmed the rumors of his role in a recent interview, saying that it was a “hard decision” since it is a character that will “define me for the last chapter” in his life. Nonetheless, the actor remains “very excited.” EXCLUSIVE: John Lithgow confirms to ScreenRant he will play Dumbledore in the #HarryPotter TV show. "You got a lot of books back there… I'm curious if you have any Harry Potter books back there?" pic.twitter.com/XLCMQJInN4— Screen Rant (@screenrant) February 25, 2025 Lithgow — the first cast member to be confirmed ahead of Harry Potter’s expected 2027 release date — has already stirred questions among diehard fans of the original film franchise, since Rowling was adamant that the cast be composed almost solely of British actors. The author was able to enforce this role because she retained much creative control when selling the rights of the books to Warner Bros. It was a somewhat contentious order on Rowling’s part, since the films were a co-production between the U.K. and the U.S., and because American filmmaker Chris Columbus — who directed the first two movies, Sorcerer’s Stone (Philosopher’s Stone in the U.K.) and Chamber of Secrets — believed more prominent American actors would make the franchise sellable. It’s the reason why the three lead roles of Harry, Ron, and Hermione were only open to British actors, despite Columbus eyeing American names like Haley Joel Osment and Jake Lloyd. While I hate to agree with Joanne (seriously kill me) but I like that she mandated all the actors to be English, welsh, Irish, Scottish and such. Something about an American in Harry Potter really does irk me. https://t.co/sKPsZ1o5c3— chupacabra (@generic_storie) February 25, 2025 It’s also why Susan Figgis, the original casting director, quit the franchise after disagreeing with Rowling’s rule. So steadfast was Rowling in her insistence on a British-only cast that she once publicly denied rumors that Columbus had cast actor Liam Aiken as Harry, but he wasn’t the only American to lose out on a role. Perhaps most famously, Robin Williams was rejected from the role of Hagrid, despite having called Columbus to express his interest. The same went for Rosie O’Donnell, whose dreams of playing Molly Weasly were dashed by the Brits-only mandate. There were just two exceptions to the rule. In a move that could position her as the OG nepo baby, Columbus’ daughter, Eleanor, appeared as Susan Bones, a girl who is sorted into Hufflepuff in The Sorcerer’s Stone, though it was a non-speaking role. For his part, American actor Verne Troyer provided the physical acting for Griphook, but it seems Lithgow’s casting in the Max reboot has done away with such parameters. Rowling has yet to respond to the first casting announcement, even though HBO and Max content boss Casey Bloys said the author is “fairly involved” in the series. 20 years ago today, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was released in theaters Robin Williams had asked for the role of Hagrid in the movie without pay, but didn't get it because J.K. Rowling wanted a cast strictly from the British Isles.pic.twitter.com/N5icUqIQlF— Screen Off Script (@ScreenOffScript) November 16, 2021 “She was very involved in the process of selecting the writer and director,” Bloys said last year, “and I imagine she’ll have opinions on casting.” Perhaps, given the controversy that has followed Rowling in recent months, the author will lay low in terms of her involvement in the series, but even the fan-casts for other roles have swerved away from the U.K. cast rule. Aside from Irish actor Cillian Murphy as Voldemort, many fans have tipped U.S. stars like Adam Driver for Severus Snape and Timothée Chalamet as Regulus Black. Regardless, we already know Lithgow can nail the accent given his role as Winston Churchill in The Crown, so Max’s Harry Potter will retain at least some of the Britishness that fans adore.