Archive · 12 Aug 2026
Nicholas Hoult Joins HBO's 'Harry Potter' Series as Gilderoy Lockhart
An actor named Nicholas Hoult is joining a new TV show about Harry Potter.
He will play a wizard named Gilderoy Lockhart.
Lockhart is a very famous and charming wizard who loves attention.
He is hired to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts at a magic school called Hogwarts.
Lockhart has also written books about magical creatures and has won a smile award five times.
A long time ago, another actor named Kenneth Branagh played the same character in a movie.
The new show is based on books written by J.K. Rowling.
The first season comes out around Christmas time.
The second season, which Hoult will be in, starts filming this fall.
The show airs on HBO and HBO Max.
Nicholas Hoult will play Gilderoy Lockhart in the second season of HBO's Harry Potter series.
Lockhart, a fame-obsessed wizard and Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, was previously played by Kenneth Branagh in the 2002 film.
Season 2 was greenlit in May and is scheduled to begin filming this fall, ahead of the Christmas premiere of Season 1, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
The series airs on HBO and streams exclusively on HBO Max, starring Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley and Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger.
Francesca Gardiner remains showrunner, with writer Jon Brown elevated to co-showrunner for Season 2.
- Who
- Nicholas Hoult, who plays Lex Luthor in Superman, has joined the cast of HBO's Harry Potter series as Gilderoy Lockhart.
- What
- Hoult will play Gilderoy Lockhart, a fame-obsessed wizard and Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, in Season 2 of the series.
- When
- Season 2 was greenlit in May and begins filming this fall; Season 1 premieres at Christmas.
- Where
- The series airs on HBO and streams exclusively on HBO Max.
- Why
- Lockhart is a major character in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and Hoult takes over the role previously played by Kenneth Branagh in the 2002 film adaptation.
- Actor
- Nicholas Hoult
- Role
- Gilderoy Lockhart
- Series
- HBO's Harry Potter series
- Season
- Season 2 (greenlit in May)
- Previous portrayal
- Kenneth Branagh in the 2002 film
- Season 2 filming
- Begins this fall
- Season 1 premiere
- Christmas (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone)
- Streaming
- Exclusively on HBO Max