Harry Potter Officially Casts Its 8th Weasley Member With Lord of the Rings Link

The 8th Weasley member has been officially cast as HBO bestowed the role of Charlie Weasley to 25-year-old Harry Gilby in the upcoming Harry Potter series. It was confirmed by Variety, with additional reporting that included Jasper Talbot and Hannah Chinn joining the cast as James and Lily Potter, respectively.

Gilby is best known for portraying the role of a young J.R.R. Tolkien in the 2019 film, Tolkien (hence the Lord of the Rings connection).

Harry Gilby’s Charlie Weasley will be joining the already-cast Weasley members, which include Alastair Stout (Ron), Gracie Cochrane (Ginny), Tristan Harland (Fred), Gabriel Harland (George), Ruari Spooner (Percy), Katherine Parkinson (Molly), and Rafe Spall (Arthur). The casting of Bill Weasley remains pending.

Harry Gilby Has Proved His On-Screen Presence With The Last Kingdom

Harry Gilby in a still from The Last Kingdom | Credits: Carnival Film and Television

In the year 2022, the iconic series The Last Kingdom premiered its fifth and final season to millions of fans worldwide. It also featured Harry Gilby in one of the main roles across the ten-episode stretch of the series.

Gilby portrayed the role of Aethelstan, King Edward’s illegitimate elder son and a disputed heir to the throne of England. Being under the protection of Uhtred of Bebbanburg, Aethelstan trains to become a warrior.

He also reprised his role as Aethelstan in the follow-up film The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die, and much of the plot revolves around Harry Gilby’s character’s actions that kick off the tale. He was loved (and hated) by fans of the show, but almost all agree that his acting was quite stellar in The Last Kingdom.

His casting as Charlie Weasley in the upcoming HBO show brings good news, since this proves that the entertainment giant is adapting the original novels quite faithfully.

Charlie Weasley’s Casting Proves HBO’s Faithful Harry Potter Adaptation

A still from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | Credits: Warner Bros.

Charlie Weasley isn’t exactly the character with the greatest importance in the J.K. Rowling novels. Being the younger brother of Bill Weasley and older than the remaining Weasleys, Charlie was sent away to study dragons in Romania (something that Ron Weasley mentioned in the original novels).

However, Charlie Weasley was never shown to be in the movies. But in the Second Wizarding War (the one with Harry Potter vs. Voldemort), Charlie became a member of the Order of the Phoenix and arrived with reinforcements during the final portion of the battle.

He was also one of the members present when Harry Potter defeated Lord Voldemort once and for all. Naturally, HBO’s cast, Harry Gilby as Charlie Weasley, goes on to show that they are quite faithful in wanting to get the adaptation just right.

We won’t be much surprised if Harry Gilby goes off-screen but returns with dragons (or other reinforcements) during the battle when it matters the most.

What do you think about Harry Gilby’s casting as Charlie Weasley? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

The Harry Potter series will premiere on December 25, 2026, on HBO Max.

Tolkien and The Last Kingdom are available to stream on Prime Video and Netflix, respectively.