Source: Dave Benett / Getty / Paapa Essiedu
The cast for the long-talked-about HBO
Harry Potter TV series has been announced, and of course, with these announcements, especially around popular IPs like the
Harry Potter franchise, you can expect some discourse. But this isn’t just everyday discourse; there is a pinch of racism because a fictional character, Severus Snape, who is initially white, will be Black this time around.
GASP!
Showrunner and executive producer Francesca Gardiner and director Mark Mylodg revealed the big names involved with the project and who they would be playing. John Lithgow will play Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer will play Minerva McGonagall, and Nick Frost will play Rubeus Hagrid.
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Those are all fine choices, but what has Potterheads’ wands twisted in a bunch is British action Paapa Essiedu (
I May Destroy You,
The Lazarus Project) taking on the role of Professor Severus Snape.
In J.K. Rowling’s novels, Snape is white, while the late Alan Rickman brilliantly portrayed the character in the films. But in the upcoming TV series, Paapa Essiedu will be taking on the role of the Snape.
Once that was revealed, the reactions immediately followed.
The Reactions To Paapa Essiedu Playing Snape Are Not Surprising
“
I seriously pray that Paapa Essiedu is made of stone cos the harassment he will face the next decade will be unprecedented. Seriously, WHAT WERE THEY ALL THINKING CASTING A BLACK ACTOR FOR SEVERUS SNAPE. Optics dude, OPTICS,” one post on X, formerly Twitter, read.
Another post read, “
i feel bad for paapa essiedu cause this is the first time i have ever seen the entire internet agree that a black man should not be cast for a specific role.”
Everyone doesn’t share that sentiment above,
like this X user who said, “
Are you upset about Paapa Essiedu playing Severus Snape? Then you are a racist.”
Welp.
This latest “controversy” wreaks of the crying white folks was doing when
Halle Bailey got the role of Ariel in the live-action remake of Disney’s
The Little Mermaid.
Folks were also
mad at Steve Toussaint playing Corlys Valereon in HBO’s
Game of Thrones spinoff, the
House of The Dragon.
As they did then, they will have to deal with it because Essiedu is Snape, whether they like it or not.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
