Kit Harington on playing Lockhart: ‘a very simple yes, please’
When Kit Harington got the call to play Gilderoy Lockhart in HBO’s Harry Potter series, he didn’t need time to think. The actor describes it as “a very simple kind of ‘yes, please’.” It turns out he has been a big fan for years.
An easy yes
Harington talked about his new role on Josh Horowitz’s podcast Happy Sad Confused, UA News reports, citing Variety. He calls himself “a bit of a nerd” when it comes to Harry Potter.
His love for the books shows in his bedtime routine. Harington listens to the Stephen Fry audiobooks every night. “My brain is incredibly busy, especially at night,” he said, according to TheWrap. The books help him fall asleep.
He is also a fan of the series itself. “I think they can really delve into it further than the films did,” Harington said. “I’m fully supportive of it.”
A tiny step to the left
Harington plays Lockhart in season 2, which adapts Chamber of Secrets. He took over the role from Nicholas Hoult, who left because of scheduling conflicts, as we reported earlier.
Lockhart is the vain Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher who is mostly in love with himself. Harington jokes about it. “He’s addicted to himself,” he said, adding about the role: “It’s just a tiny step to my left.”
He is keeping quiet about Lockhart’s look for now. “I’m going to say very little about anything because it’s highly secretive. But yes, I’m engaging with that as we speak.” He did reveal his own Hogwarts house: Gryffindor.
Kit Harington reveals his Hogwarts house on Happy Sad Confused. Watch it in this video:
Following Kenneth Branagh
Harington has big shoes to fill. In the 2002 film, Lockhart was played by Kenneth Branagh, whose grinning, golden-haired fraud is one of the most memorable parts of Chamber of Secrets.
Harington isn’t new to the character, though. He already voiced Lockhart in the Audible full-cast audiobook, so he knows the character well before stepping onto the set.
His self-mocking “tiny step to my left” may be the best sign yet. Lockhart only works if the actor is willing to laugh at fame and vanity, and Harington, who knows a thing or two about fame after Game of Thrones, clearly is.