Inside the fascinating lives of the young Harry Potter cast
From marrying the heir to the Playboy fortune to plenty of glow ups, here’s what the young cast of the Harry Potter films has been up to.
They were the trainee wizards that had us spellbound in the Harry Potter films – but where did they get to when Hogwarts closed its doors?
Earlier this month new dad Rupert Grint – who starred as Ron Weasley – shared a picture of his daughter Wednesday, five months, and joined Instagram, immediately racking up 1 million followers.
While Rupert and co-stars Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) and Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) have gone on to stellar careers in stage and screen, some of their classmates have taken different paths.
Almost two decades since the first movie Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone broke box office records by grossing £763 million ($A1.4 billion) worldwide, the child stars have gone on to become a bodybuilder, a Playboy model and a cage fighter.
One also found himself on the wrong side of the law – even before the eight-film franchise was over.
Here’s what the magical kids of Hogwarts got up to after casting their final spells.
SCARLETT BRYNE – PANSY PARKINSON
Scarlett Byrne, 30, starred as Slytherin Pansy Parkinson in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and both Deathly Hallows films – and has gone on to have a charmed life.
The stunning actress is married to Hugh Hefner’s son Cooper, 29, who took over the Playboy empire after the death of his father and is now estimated to be worth £7.5 million ($A13.7 million).
The pair welcomed their first baby, Betsy Rose Hefner in August this year and Scarlett has also done her bit to for the family finances by posing in the buff in the men’s magazine in 2017.
She has also appeared in Dancing With The Stars as well as starring in The Vampire Diaries, where she plays Nora Hildegard, and Falling Skies, where she plays Lexi.
JOSH HERDMAN – GREGORY GOYLE
Actor Josh Herdman, known as Draco’s thuggish sidekick Gregory Goyle, went from henchman to hench after taking up a career as an MMA fighter.
He won his first fight in 2016, against Janusz Walachowski and his most recent fight was in February 2018, which ended in another win.
“I chose MMA because I love the sport. It’s raw, exciting and unpredictable,” he said at the time.
Josh, now 33 and dad to two sons with partner Morgan, told the Daily Star he was a “party animal” and “needed something to focus on”.
He added: “You need a discipline, you need tenacity and you need a drive to keep at it.”
The tattooed fighter – now totally unrecognisable as the 13-year-old actor in the Potter films – frequently appears at Harry Potter conventions around the world, as well as continuing the MMA career with fitness classes.
But he does still take the occasional acting role including the Anna Friel drama Marcella and the recent ITV drama White House Farm.
JAMIE WAYLETT – VINCENT CRABBE
Fans were left mystified when Goyle’s partner in crime Vincent Crabbe disappeared from the final two films in the franchise despite playing a pivotal part in the book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
He was replaced with a new character, Zabini Blaise, for a crucial fight between Draco’s posse and Harry, Ron and Hermione.
Sadly, it was revealed that Jamie Waylett, who played Crabbe, had been ditched after being arrested for drug-related offences.
He and a friend were pulled over by the police who found a knife and eight bags of cannabis in their car and it was then discovered he was growing the drug at his mother’s home in north-west London, in April 2009.
He was found guilty and sentenced to 120 hours community service.
Two years later he was arrested again, during the riots in London, and was convicted of violent disorder, gaining a two year jail sentence.
DANIELLE TABOR – ANGELINA JOHNSON
Danielle was 16 when she joined the wizarding franchise, appearing in the first three films.
She went on to become a bodybuilder, competing in bikini competitions and tracking her workout regime and food plans on social media.
Her body transformation, documented on Instagram, was partly a reaction to her experiences as an actor.
“I think subconsciously you wanted to ‘fit in’ to the TV and film world and unfortunately that meant being petite and skinny,” she told Pop Sugar.
“The camera does add 10 pounds; I remember this ad I did — I walked away from camera and I looked (what I thought was) huge. It does affect your idea of normal.”
Dani, now 35, has also become a personal trainer and has swapped her magic wand for a games console, collaborating with gamer Dan DTM on his YouTube Red channel.
She is now known as Dani Tabor-Smith, having tied the knot in 2018, and recently bought a house in north London.
AFSHAN AZAD – PADMA PATIL
Afshan played twin Padma in the last five films, landing the role when casting agents visited her school and she auditioned “just for fun”.
Now 31, she has become a beauty influencer with a following of 155,000 on Instagram and collaborations with brands including Iconic.
Three years ago, she collaborated with Maya Weddings before walking down the aisle herself and she recently showed off her designer shoe collection, including Fendi, Laboutin and Jimmy Choo heels.
She was most recently seen at a German Comic-Con event, with hundreds of dolls of her Harry Potter character.
MATTHEW LEWIS – NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM
Matthew took on the role of the put-upon Neville when he was just 12 and he instantly became recognisable across the world.
But fans of the franchise would barely recognise him now – as he blossomed into quite a hunk.
In 2015, he stunned fans when he posed in his undies for Attitude magazine, showing off an impressive six pack.
Now 31, the actor has had a successful career since the series ended, starring in the movie Me Before You, alongside Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin, and the TV series Girlfriends.
He was most recently seen on TV as Hugh Hulton in the new series of All Creatures Great and Small.
The star married travel executive Angela Jones in 2018 and divides his times between their home in Orlando, Florida, and the UK.
HARRY MELLING – DUDLEY DURSLEY
The boy wizard’s spoilt cousin was played by Harry Melling in five of the films.
But he almost lost the role in the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part Two, because he had shed so much weight.
In the end, he played the part wearing a fat suit.
After the franchise ended, Harry said: “I can now shed the child actor thing, like the fat, and start a new career, because no one sees me as Dudley.”
He’s not wrong. The talented actor, now 31, is currently starring in The Queen’s Gambit and looks completely different.
JAMES AND OLIVER PHELPS – FRED AND GEORGE WEASLEY
The identical twins from Birmingham were cast as Ron Weasley’s older, wisecracking brothers at the age of 14 and starred in all eight films.
They originally auditioned “to get a day off school” but have carried on as actors since, most recently playing two police constables in a movie called Own Worst Enemy, set for release in 2021.
At 33, they have lost their trademark ginger locks with James growing his brown hair long – distinguishing himself from his brother.
As well as acting, the pair host a popular podcast called Double Trouble and have become Instagram influencers, with 4 million followers between them.
They have recently teamed up with a sweet brand, appropriately called The Wizard’s Magic, and announced a collaboration with Lego.
HERO FIENNES-TIFFIN – YOUNG TOM RIDDLE
Hero – whose actual name is more fabulous than any Harry Potter character – comes from acting royalty as the son of film director Martha Fiennes, and nephew of actors Joseph and Ralph.
At 11, he was cast in the sixth Harry Potter film to play young Tom – who was destined to turn into Ralph’s evil Vordemort – because of the family resemblance to his uncle and a “wonderful haunted quality that seemed to bring Tom Riddle alive on screen”.
But in the 11 years since he has magically transformed into a hot young actor, with roles in Cleaning Up, with Sheridan Smith, and the TV thriller Safe.
The 23-year-old is currently making hearts flutter as Hardin Scott in the After series of films, based on the books by Anna Todd.
The first instalment, After We Collided, was released this year with two more, After Ever Happy and After We Fell, in the pipeline.
BENEDICT CLARKE – YOUNG SEVERUS SNAPE
A latecomer to wizardry, Benedict Clarke landed the role of the young Severus Snape in Deathly Hallows: Part 2, at the age of 15.
The blue-eyed boy played the teen version of Alan Rickman’s character, Professor Snape, as it was revealed he used to be in love with Harry’s mum Lily Potter.
He starred in a number of short films after the movie’s 2011 release, including 2014’s Andys and In The Wake Of Sirens.
But he proved to be a word wizard too, putting his acting on hold in 2016 to get a BA in English from Cambridge University before going on to study at the Central School of Speech and Drama.
As well as starring in a number of stage productions in the last year, including Much Ado About Nothing, he is a talented photographer, posting arty snaps for the appreciation of his 40,000 Instagram followers.
This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission
Bianca’s mum responds to Kanye ‘sex request’
Bianca Censori’s Aussie mum has responded to reports about her son-in-law’s alleged X-rated request.
Teen victims’ bombshell new Diddy claims
Bombshell new claims allege Diddy invited teenagersto his hotel and threatened to kill them if they did not comply.
King caught up in Aussie ‘insult’ row
Australia’s state leaders are being accused of “insulting” the King, just days out from his high-profile visit Down Under.