HBO's Harry Potter remake to be known.

Among other casting announcements, including the reveal that Katherine Parkinson will play Molly Weasley, came the news that Bel Powley and Daniel Rigby will play Petunia and Vernon Dursley in the Harry Potter remake. These are Harry's abusive aunt and uncle, who took him in following his parents' deaths. Petunia is Lily Potter's older sister, and though the two were close as young children, they had become estranged before the witch's death. Fiona Shaw and Richard Griffiths previously played the Dursleys in the Harry Potter movies, but the remake's casting is quite different.

The Harry Potter Show's Aunt Petunia & Uncle Vernon Actors Are Much Closer In Age To Their Book Characters

Petunia Dursley Should Only Be About 34 In Sorcerer's Stone

When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was released, the actors who played Petunia and Vernon Dursley were significantly older than their characters were in the books. While we don't know Petunia's exact age, she was a few years older than Lily, who was only 21 when she was murdered. This means that when Harry received his Hogwarts letter 11 years later, Petunia should have been about 34 or 35. In the Sorcerer's Stone movie, Shaw was about a decade older at 42. Then there was Griffiths, who first portrayed Vernon when he was 54 years old.

In contrast, Powley and Rigby are quite a bit younger. Our new Petunia actor is currently 33 years old, so just about in line with her book counterpart. Rigby is 42, which may be a bit older than the Harry Potter books implied Vernon to be. However, this is still younger than the character previously appeared on screen. Overall, this is great news. After so long, it's hard to imagine anyone else but Shaw and Griffiths playing Petunia and Vernon. However, this also means that our perception of Petunia and Vernon has been subconsciously shifted.

The Harry Potter movies completely lost this emotional weight by casting older actors, but HBO's remake can bring it back.

James and Lily Potter were only 21 when they died, which means that Petunia was only about 23 when she lost her sister. The whole situation is far more tragic when ing these characters' ages, since Petunia couldn't have cut off with Lily for long before the younger sister died. They were barely more than kids, but their choices became permanent in ways they were too young to have anticipated. The Harry Potter movies completely lost this emotional weight by casting older actors, but HBO's remake can bring it back.

Why Harry Potter's Movie Adaptations Made That Generation So Much Older Than Their Book Counterparts

The Harry Potter Movies Needed Seasoned Actors

Though we can't know for certain why older actors were cast to play Lily and James' generation in the Harry Potter movies, the impressive cast itself provides a hint. Back when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was being made into a movie, JK Rowling's books weren't nearly as well-known as they are now. Granted, this book series was undoubtedly a big deal, but it wasn't yet a massive phenomenon. Warner Bros needed a way to draw audiences into the theaters. With such young and unknown actors playing the Golden Trio, a cast of iconic, legendary actors in the adult roles was the best approach.

Shaw and Griffiths had already left their mark on the film industry, just like Robbie Coltrane, Richard Harris, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, and other adult Harry Potter movie actors. These legends made the films more appealing to adult audiences who hadn't read the books. This isn't so much a factor going into HBO's Harry Potter remake. Between the books and movies, this franchise is already massively popular, so the IP itself is the draw. This opens the door for HBO to feature a different sort of cast. In the case of Vernon and Petunia, this means a younger set of stars.