HBO viewers will meet at least six Dark Wizards in Season 1 of the Harry Potter reboot show. The Wizarding World is filled with Dark Wizards, most of whom are Death Eaters and loyal followers to Lord Voldemort. While the series' key villains, such as Voldemort himself and Bellatrix Lestrange, don't truly enter the fray until the later Harry Potter books that won't be adapted on HBO for years to come, The Philosopher's Stone (The Sorcerer's Stone) has its fair share of baddies.
The HBO reboot has already landed a stacked cast of heroic characters, including John Lithgow's Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer's Minerva McGonagall, and Nick Frost's Rubeus Hagrid. Meanwhile, Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton, and Alastair Stout have come on board as the Golden Trio of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley, respectively. Production is currently underway in the U.K. ahead of an expected 2027 premiere.
Every Dark Magic Wizard Confirmed for Harry Potter Reboot
Quirinus Quirrell
The turban-wearing Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Quirinus Quirrell, will serve as Season 1's big twist villain, as fans of the books and movies will know. The young, stuttering Hogwarts teacher with Lord Voldemort tucked behind his turban will be played by stage star Luke Thallon.
Quirrell himself isn't necessarily a Dark Wizard but rather a curious young wizard who took a grand tour around the world before taking up the Defence Against the Dark Arts post at Hogwarts. It was on those travels that he encountered what remained of Lord Voldemort, who assumed control of him.
Severus Snape
Hogwarts' potions master, Severus Snape, was a Death Eater during the First Wizarding War who defected before Voldemort's downfall to become a double agent. Throughout the Harry Potter saga, Snape's true allegiances are a running mystery that won't become clear until Season 7 and The Deathly Hallows.
Snape is played by Gangs of London actor Paapa Essiedu, marking a race-swap as the Harry Potter reboot addresses the franchise's diversity issues. The potions professor's most famous Dark Wizard moment won't come until Season 6, when he kills Albus Dumbledore atop the Astronomy Tower.
Draco Malfoy
Harry Potter's Hogwarts archrival, Draco Malfoy, will be played by the young Lord of the Flies actor Lox Pratt and is expected to appear in all seven seasons. While Malfoy may be an 11-year-old Slytherin for now, he will go on to follow in his father's footsteps and become a Death Eater closer to the series' end.
Despite not becoming a true Dark Wizard himself until the later seasons, Malfoy will carry an antagonistic presence throughout HBO Max's Harry Potter. The infamous Hogwarts bully will find himself in constant rivalry with the Boy Who Lived, whether that be on the Quidditch pitch or in the corridors.
Lucius Malfoy
The wealthy, ministry worker Lucius Malfoy will be brought to life by Ripley actor Johnny Flynn, replacing big-screen star Jason Isaacs. The Malfoy patriarch was famously a Death Eater and devoted follower of Lord Voldemort during the First Wizarding War, as he is once again during the Second.
Lucius Malfoy has a significant antagonistic presence throughout the Harry Potter franchise, but he doesn't debut in the books until The Chamber of Secrets. The HBO reboot appears to have moved up his debut to Season 1 for unclear reasons.
Vincent Crabbe
Draco Malfoy is accompanied around Hogwarts by two fellow Slytherin goons, one of whom is Vincent Crabbe, who comes from a lineage of Dark Wizards. He will be played in the HBO series by newcomer Finn Stephens.
Crabbe's role in the Harry Potter movies was cut short when actor Jamie Waylett was arrested for drug possession and his involvement in the 2011 London Riots. Due to these legal issues, his role in The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 was replaced by another Slytherin, Blaise Zabini, but Crabbe should be there until the end in the HBO series when he is killed by his own Fiendfyre curse in the Battle of Hogwarts.
Gregory Goyle
Much like Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle is the son of a Death Eater who befriends Draco Malfoy and becomes one of Hogwarts' biggest bullies. He will be brought to life in the reboot by newcomer William Nash.
When Crabbe was eliminated from the Harry Potter movies, the duties of casting the Fiendfyre curse and his subsequent death in the Room of Requirement fell to Goyle. The HBO series will likely remain loyal to J.K. Rowling's books, with Goyle being the one to survive and escape the Room of Requirement.
BONUS) Lord Voldemort
Currently, HBO hasn't confirmed whether the Harry Potter saga's main villain, Lord Voldemort, will truly appear in Season 1. Of course, franchise fans know well that the Dark Lord will be hiding behind Professor Quirrell's turban and will likely be unveiled around the finale, but no actor has been cast at this time.
Furthermore, set photos from the Harry Potter series confirmed that the HBO series will feature new flashback scenes not included in the movies. As part of that, it seems the reboot will depict Lily and James Potter's deaths on Halloween 1981, which would presumably require Lord Voldemort to appear, even if his face is obscured.
