Popverse's top stories of the day

• The Fantastic Four: First Steps CinemaCon footage teases big reveal: The Invisible Woman is pregnant?
• MEMBERS ONLY: Popversations: James Tynion IV peels back the layers on his creator-owned empire with Department of Truth, Something is Killing the Children, and more
• Somewhere Beyond the Sea author TJ Klune on "the magic of being able to see yourself in the written word" and more

HBO's Harry Potter television adaptation continues to pick up steam as the network steps into the final stages of the casting process for the roles of Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape. The roles were originally played by the late Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman in the film series which began nearly twenty-five years ago. The network has some big shoes to fill. 

For its Harry Potter reboot series, Deadline reports that HBO is in the process of negotiating and finalizing deals for Janet McTeer and Paapa Essiedu to play Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape, respectively. Previously, Deadline reported that the network had been circling Essiedu for Snape in December of 2024, suggesting that negotiations have been smooth thus far between HBO and the actor's representatives. 

It should be noted that, if cast, Essiedu would be twenty years younger than Rickman was when he played Snape in 2001's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Essiedu is 34 years old and has appeared in Michaela Coel's powerhouse series I May Destroy You, along with Alex Garland's A24 film, Men. Snape was classmates with Harry Potter's parents at Hogwarts, which could explain why HBO is interested in finding a younger actor this time around. 

This news comes hot off the heels of John Lithgow's reveal that he will be playing Albus Dumbledore in the reboot series. The announcement of Lithgow's casting has been controversial, given that he's American and has been a supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community after playing a gay man in 2014's Love is Strange. HBO's Harry Potter series will have J.K. Rowling onboard as an executive producer, despite the writer's inflammatory statements targeting transgender people over the last 5 years. 

Want to binge all things Harry Potter? Look no further than our handy dandy Wizarding World universe watch guide