Here’s What 29 Actors From Harry Potter Are Doing Now

Perhaps one of the biggest stars of the Harry Potter cast, Dame Maggie Smith needs no introduction. Before appearing on the big screens as professor Minerva McGonagall, Smith had a seemingly-endless list of roles on stage, film, and television. The actress was such a prominent figure in the British culture and art scene that Queen Elizabeth II made her a Dame in 1990. She was cast as the Head of Gryffindor and Head of Transfiguration, Minerva McGonagall in 2001 and appeared in seven of the eight films in the series. Unsurprisingly, Smith had plenty of roles after the Potter series ended, including Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham in the TV series Downton Abbey for which she received a Golden Globe Award and two Emmy Awards. Currently, the actress has just wrapped up work on a film Downton Abbey which acts as a continuation of the show as well as working on A Boy Called Christmas which is set to come out in 2020.

While the rest of the cast had some kind of acting gig before landing a role in Harry Potter, Evanna Lynch had no experience in the field prior being cast as Luna Lovegood at all. She was obsessed with the books as a child and wrote many letters to the author before hearing about open casting for the role of Lovegood. She was picked out of 15,000 girls and producers have claimed that while many could play Luna, Evanna was, in fact, Luna, especially with her deep knowledge and affinity to the character. After the Potter series was finished, Lynch went on to play in several other movies, including a 2015 Irish independent drama film My Name Is Emily where she was a lead. Lynch also played alongside her Harry Potter co-stars James and Oliver Phelps in Danny and the Human Zoo. In 2018, Evanna competed on season 27 of ABC's Dancing with the Stars where she reached the finale. Currently, the actress has just wrapped up work on a crime comedy Madness in the Method.

One part of the main trio, Hermione Granger was brought to life by Emma Watson when she was only eleven. Just like Radcliffe, Watson spent ten years working on the Potter films that brought her popularity and international recognition. After the final movie in the series came out in 2011, Watson continued her acting career, starring in movies like My Week with Marilyn, The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Bling Ring. Her next big role came in 2017 when she was cast as Belle in a live-action adaptation of the Beauty and the Beast. The actress also managed to split her time between acting and studying, acquiring a bachelor's degree in English literature. In 2014 she was appointed as a UN Women Goodwill ambassador and helped launch the campaign HeForShe, calling for men to advocate gender equality. She has recently finished work on Greta Gerwig's film adaptation of Little Women, alongside Saoirse Ronan and Meryl Streep.

Matthew Lewis stunned everyone with his incredible 'glow-up' as the Harry Potter films were ending as he looked nothing like the kid that we all watched at the beginning of the series. Lewis had been acting since he was five, but only at the age of 12 did he finally land the role that became one of his signatures. The awkward, wide-toothed and round-faced boy was none other than Neville Longbottom and Lewis seemed to fit that role beautifully. But ten years later, Neville's journey was not only one from fear to courage but also quite an ugly duckling story where in the end, he emerged a beautiful swan. The actor has since made himself known outside the Potter world by playing Jamie Bradley in The Syndicate and Corporal Gordon "Towerblock" House in the BBC Three comedy drama Bluestone 42. As of 2019, Lewis has reportedly wrapped up work on a comedy titled Baby Done where he plays a character named Tim.

Jason Isaacs is, perhaps, best known for his roles as Colonel William Tavington in The Patriot, criminal Michael Caffee in the Showtime series Brotherhood, Marshal Georgy Zhukov in The Death of Stalin and, of course, Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter films. After auditioning for the role, Isaacs confessed that he read the 4 Harry Potter books that had been released at that time in one sitting and described them as 'crack'. After the Potter films concluded, Isaacs worked on the NBC series Awake, action adventure drama series Dig and other projects. Currently, the actor is working on Scoob, an animated film based on the popular "Scooby-Doo" cartoon, where he lends his voice to Dick Dastardly.

The main star of the series, Daniel Radcliffe, jumped into the role in 2000 after he auditioned at the age of eleven. While at first, the actor and his parents were reluctant to accept the role, once Daniel became Harry Potter, his life was changed forever. Radcliffe basically grew up on the series, spending ten years working on eight films that brought him fame, fortune, and praise from critics. It's no wonder the actor went on to have a splendid career in the movie scene, starring in a wide variety of roles including lawyer Arthur Kipps in the horror film The Woman in Black, famed beat poet Allen Ginsberg in Kill Your Darlings, Victor Frankenstein's assistant Igor in the science fiction fantasy Victor Frankenstein, Manny, a sentient corpse in Swiss Army Man, and more. Radcliffe also dabbled in Broadway scene working on musicals such as How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Currently, the actor is finishing work on a thriller Escape from Pretoria in which he plays real-life South African escapee Tim Jenkin.

Robbie Coltrane had a long acting career way before he became known as the gentle half-giant Hagrid. He started acting in his early 20s and had plenty of TV and roles under his belt. Some of the most prominent credits in his list include ones such as James Bond films GoldenEye and The World Is Not Enough and a supporting role in From Hell. Coltrane was J.K. Rowling's top choice for Rubeus Hagrid so it was small wonder when he was cast in 2001. After the series that took 10 years of the actor's life had wrapped up, Robbie worked on projects such as Pixar's Brave, Great Expectations, National Treasure. As of 2019, Coltrane is still working on his series Robbie Coltrane Critical Evidence that he started in 2016 and has more or less ceased acting.

Helena Bonham Carter is one of the many Harry Potter actresses that had an impressive career before appearing in the Potter movies. She is, perhaps, best known for her roles of Kate Croy in The Wings of the Dove, Queen Elizabeth in The King's Speech and, of course, Bellatrix Lestrange. As Tim Burton's muse and partner, Bonham Carter appeared in many of his films, such as Planet of the Apes, Big Fish, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderland and its sequel Alice Through the Looking Glass. Currently, the actress is set to appear on seasons three and four of The Crown as Princess Margaret, season one of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, as well as the animated film, The Land of Sometimes.

Coming from a family full of actors (his maternal grandfather was actor Patrick Troughton a.k.a the Second Doctor in Doctor Who!), Harry Melling brought Harry Potter's spoiled cousin Dudley Dursley to life. The actor worked on five Potter films, making his big screen debut in 2001. While the first few movies saw Melling as the perfect fit for a round child, by 2009, the actor had lost so much weight that the producers were considering recasting the role. Harry Melling, however, reprised the role wearing a fat suit. Melling commented on it by saying that his weight loss was a very freeing experience, allowing him to seek different roles and distance himself from his Potter role: "I can now shed the child actor thing like the fat and start a new career because no one sees me as Dudley." Since the last Harry Potter film, Melling has worked on projects like Coen brothers' Western The Ballad of Buster Scruggs where his performance was praised by critics.

Alfred Enoch was 13 when he was cast as Dean Thomas in the Philosopher's Stone. He played the role in seven of the eight Harry Potter films and although it wasn't as big of a role as the Golden trio's, it was definitely quite a significant one in Enoch's career. After the Potter films, the actor went on to star in the critically-acclaimed Shonda Rhimes' series How to Get Away with Murder, where he played one of the main roles of Wes Gibbins alongside Viola Davis' Annalise Keating. He played the main role in season 2 of Trust Me as well as numerous theater plays. Currently, Enoch is working on a project titled Provisional Measure that's set to be released in 2020.