Paapa Essiedu is one of Britain’s most accomplished actors, but the goodwill he’s built up after years of roles in hit series like “I May Destroy You” hasn’t stopped trolls who are angry he was cast as Severus Snape in HBO’s “Harry Potter” reboot, he told The Times of London.
“I’ve been told, ‘Quit or I’ll murder you’,” the actor explained.
Essiedu came by his own Harry Potter fandom the same way a lot of fans have.
“I was an avid reader as a kid,” he told the outlet. “My mum couldn’t afford a babysitter in the holidays, so she would take me to the library. I loved Harry Potter. I never saw the films but the books were escapism when other things were less easy for me.”
News of Essiedu’s casting was reported in December 2024 by TheWrap and made public in April of the following year. The actor understands that spending the next 10 years recreating the role originated by the late Alan Rickman is a tall order.
“Yes, this is a big commitment,” he told The Times. “I’ll be 45 by the time I finish and I know my life is going to change in a big way, but I have to just surrender to that. I could have children by the end of this.”
Essiedu isn’t pretending the racism surrounding his casting hasn’t impacted him.
“It really matters,” he said. “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 … ,” he laughs nervously. “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.”
But at the same time, he admitted the response also pushes him.
“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?” Essiedu added. “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.”
Read the interview with Paapa Essiedu at The Times of London.
The post Paapa Essiedu Says He’s Received Death Threats Since Being Cast as Severus Snape in HBO ‘Harry Potter’ Reboot appeared first on TheWrap.
