Paapa Essiedu, who has been cast as Professor Snape in HBO Max’s upcoming Harry Potter series, has revealed that he has received race-driven death threats since his casting was announced, including messages telling him to leave the role or be murdered.
“I’ve been told, ‘Give up or I’ll kill you,'” the actor shared Sunday Times of London.
“The reality is, if I look on Instagram, I’ll see someone say, ‘I’m going to come to your house and kill you.’ So while I’m pretty sure I won’t be murdered… no one should have to encounter this to do their job. Many people risk their lives in their work. I play a wizard in Harry Potter. And I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t affect me emotionally.”
Essiedu, who is known for his roles in Black mirror and I can destroy youis set to tackle one of the wizarding world’s most iconic characters, the brooding potions master previously played by the late Alan Rickman in the original film series.
His casting sparked a backlash from a vocal section of the fanbase, but Essiedu has made it clear that it has only strengthened his resolve.
“The abuse fuels me,” he said.
“And makes me more passionate about making this character my own because I think about how I felt as a child. I would imagine myself at Hogwarts on a broomstick, and the idea that a kid like me can see themselves represented in that world? That’s the motivation to not be intimidated by someone saying they’d rather I died than do work, I want to be really proud of.”
His connection to Harry Potter the universe is a personal one, rooted in childhood.
Although he had never seen the original films starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, he grew up with JK Rowling’s books.
“My mom couldn’t afford a babysitter during the holidays, so she would take me to the library,” he recalled. “I loved Harry Potter. I never saw the movies, but the books were escapism when other things were less easy for me.”
Essiedu has signed on for ten years, a commitment he described Sunday Times equally significant by any measure.
“I’ll be 45 when I’m done,” he said, “and I know my life is going to change in a big way, but I have to just surrender to it. I could have kids at the end of this.”
The new series, which will launch on HBO Max in 2027, has an almost entirely new cast.
Dominic McLaughlin will play Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton will take on Hermione Granger and Alastair Stout will play Ron Weasley.
