MOVIE NEWS – As Harry Potter fans keep gearing up for the franchise revival via the HBO series, one former star looks back and reveals some very interesting details about making the iconic fantasy film series. Jason Isaacs, famous for originally playing Slytherin House icon Lucius Malfoy, has shared something surprising about making Harry Potter: contrary to popular belief when it comes to studio-controlled productions, he was actually able to improvise a bit on set. And some of those improvised lines may have ended up in the final cut.

Isaacs appeared on the latest episode of Dinner’s on Me, the podcast hosted by Modern Family’s Jesse Tyler Ferguson. There, the actor—who also played a troubled patriarch in the latest season of The White Lotus—reflected on bringing the Harry Potter antagonist to life.
“The thing that was very surprising is how much leeway we had to improvise and change things,” Isaacs said about the process of adapting J.K. Rowling’s books to the big screen. He mentioned that the author was aware some changes were inevitable for film, but he actually started improvising even before meeting her.
“Jo [J.K. Rowling] recognized they were films and not books, and it’s a different medium. She wasn’t on set. I didn’t meet her for years. On my very first day, I was improvising lines. My very first shot was walking out of Dumbledore’s office from the end of Chamber of Secrets, and where he just dismissed me and I leave and I went, ‘I don’t know, would this guy leave without saying something?’ Harry Potter’s there, [and Lucius] is a very proud, arrogant man. Surely, he’d say something trying to get status back in, and so we’ll try something. And I made up a line, and Daniel made up a line back. And I thought, ‘We’re allowed to make s— up in Harry Potter.’”

The actor also took the opportunity to praise his talented co-star. Daniel Radcliffe, determined to build a career beyond the Harry Potter typecast, has already had some success, but Isaacs believes Radcliffe’s best is yet to come: “I always knew he was smart. I thought he would, and I still think, he’ll end up being a director as well as an actor. He was always so grounded and so mature and humble, and he’s continued to be ambitious, really ambitious, and take risks as well. He’s like, ‘I’ve been famous. I’ve been rich. I’ve done all those things. So now I can do interesting independent films.’”

Jason Isaacs Praises His Replacement in the Upcoming ‘Harry Potter’ Series

The Harry Potter series is coming soon, and while HBO’s reboot has been controversial, the cast is now in place. Isaacs had nothing but admiration for those taking up the Potter legacy, especially Johnny Flynn, the new Lucius Malfoy: “A fantastic actor, a lovely man and, irritatingly, a rather brilliant musician too. Couldn’t have handed the snake-topped baton on to anyone better. Just please don’t make him sing.”

Source: Dinner’s on Me Podcast MovieWeb