Actor Paapa Essiedu, who will play a race-swapper version of Severus Snape in HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter series, responded to the backlash he’s received since being cast in the film.
In an interview with The Times UK, Essiedu claimed he’s received multiple death threats, ““The reality is that if I look at Instagram I will see somebody saying, ‘I’m going to come to your house and kill you.’ So while I’m pretty sure I’m not going to be murdered… That could age badly! But, yes, while I hope I’ll be OK, nobody should have to encounter this for doing their job.”
“Many people put their lives on the line in their work. I’m playing a wizard in Harry Potter. And I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t affect me emotionally,” he said.
He continued telling the outlet, “But the abuse fuels me. And makes me more passionate about making this character my own, because I think of how I felt as a kid. I would imagine myself at Hogwarts on broomsticks, and the idea that a kid like me can see themselves represented in that world? That’s motivation to not be intimidated by someone saying they’d rather I died instead of doing work I’m going to be really proud of.”
“But even if you successfully ignore it, it doesn’t mean it’s not happening,” he added. “The issue remains endemic and, anyway, people see stuff and message to ask if I’m OK.”
While he’s claimed to receive death threats he has not reported any of them to authorities. He explained why, “No. I don’t think some 17-year-old boy being put in jail for two weeks for threatening to murder me would actually make me feel any better.”
Additionally, he shared that the reason he took the role was because of the themes of the series, “The themes that run through Harry Potter are of love triumphing over hate — of acceptance. And that’s why I’m doing it.”
Before Essiedu was cast in the series, HBO promised that it would be “authentic to the original books and bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world.”
Author J.K. Rowling also stated, “Max’s commitment to preserving the integrity of my books is important to me, and I'm looking forward to being part of this new adaptation which will allow for a degree of depth and detail only afforded by a long form television series.”
Essiedu’s casting proves both of these claims a lie and it begs the question of what else will be changed to promote divisive woke agendas such as critical race theory, feminism, and queer theory.
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