From Harry Potter to Disney

For those of you who are fans of the Harry Potter (2001-2011) franchise, did any of you happen to know that several of the people who acted in that franchise have also acted in Disney films? Were you also aware that they have appeared in another renowned film franchises as well? In this story I would like to share with you about each of the actors who have gone from “Harry Potter” to “Disney.”

• Emma Thompson who portrayed Professor Sybill Trelawney in “Harry Potter,” voiced Captain Amelia in Disney’s Treasure Planet (2002) and Queen Elinor in Disney/Pixar’s Brave (2012). She portrayed Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers in Disney’s Saving Mr. Banks (2013) and will next be seen as Mrs. Potts in Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast (2017). 
• Imelda Staunton who starred as Professor Delores Umbridge in “Harry Potter,” portrayed Knotgrass the Fairy in Disney’s Maleficent (2014) with Angelina Jolie and voiced the Tall Flower Faces in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (2010).
• The late, great Alan Rickman (1946-2016), who played Professor Severus Snape in “Harry Potter,” provided the voice the Blue Caterpillar in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (2010). Before his untimely death, he reprised the role of the Blue Caterpillar for the sequel, Alice Through the Looking Glass, which will be released on May 27th, 2016.
• Julie Walters who portrayed Mrs. Molly Weasley in “Harry Potter,” voiced the Witch in Disney/Pixar’s Brave (2012). She played Mrs. Bird in Paddington (2014), which also starred Jim Broadbent who played Professor Horace Slughorn in “Harry Potter,” and the voices of Imelda Staunton and Michael Gambon who succeeded the late, great Richard Harris (1930-2002) in the role of Professor Albus Dumbledore in “Harry Potter.”
• Jim Broadbent who played Professor Horace Slughorn in "Harry Potter" starred as Lord Kelvin in Disney's Around the World in 80 Days (2004) and as Professor Kirke in Disney's The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) and voiced Sergeant in Disney's Valiant (2005).
• Bill Nighy who played Minister Rufus Scrimgeour in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010) played Davy Jones in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men’s Chest (2006) and its sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End (2007). He also starred in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) and it’s sequel The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015), both of which also starred Maggie Smith, who played Professor Minerva McGonagall in “Harry Potter.” 
• Richard Griffiths portrayed Uncle Vernon Dursley in “Harry Potter” and acted the role of Barry Nottingham in Disney’s Bedtime Stories (2008) opposite Adam Sandler. He starred as Santa Claus in Disney’s A Muppet Christmas: Letters to Santa (2008) on television. 
• Domhnall Gleeson portrayed Bill Weasley in “Harry Potter” and General Hux in Disney’s Star Wars Episode 7: The Force Awakens (2015). Gleeson’s father, actor Brendan Gleeson, played Professor Alastor “Mad-Eye” Moody in “Harry Potter.”
• Emma Watson, who is best known throughout the world as Hermione Granger in “Harry Potter,” will next be seen as Disney’s latest princess in the role of Belle in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (2017), which will reunite her with Emma Thompson.

Each of the stars of the Harry Potter films have quite a lot of remarkable connections to one another. You might remember them as their “Harry Potter,” characters better than as their Disney characters, but they all have had unique careers that go far above those boundaries. If you’d like take it beyond here, I’ve got some other interesting connections for you about each of these actors.

Emma Thompson-Mrs. Potts was originated by her Nanny McPhee (2005) co-star and good friend, Angela Lansbury in Beauty and the Beast (1991)). She made Nanny McPhee in 2005, which also starred Colin Firth and Thomas Sangster from Love Actually (2003) and Imelda Staunton from “Harry Potter.” In the sequel to "Nanny McPhee," Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang (2010), Thompson reunited with Maggie Smith.

Imelda Staunton-She also appeared in Sense and Sensibility (1995) as Charlotte Palmer and as Mrs. Blatherwick in Nanny McPhee (2005). She also acted opposite Jim Broadbent in her Oscar-Nominated Performance in Vera Drake (2004). 

Alan Rickman-Rickman and Emma Thompson also appeared together as husband and wife in Love Actually (2003) and as good friends in Sense and Sensibility (1995), both of which also starred Hugh Grant, who played Emma Thompson’s love interest in the latter and her brother in the primary. Although Grant was never in a “Harry Potter” film, he did, however, have a line in Love Actually (2003) where he jokingly referred to England as the land of Harry Potter. (Rickman also starred in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) with Timothy Spall and Helena Bonham Carter. Spall who played Peter Pettigrew/Wormtail in Harry Potter and Carter played Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter. 

Julie Walters-She was reunited with Emma Thompson again for Effie Gray in 2014.

Robert Hardy and Elizabeth Spriggs-Who appeared as Sir John Middleton and Mrs. Jennings in Sense and Sensibility (1995) also had roles in “Harry Potter.” Elizabeth Spriggs played the Fat Lady in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) while Robert Hardy played Minister Cornelius Fudge in the rest of the series.

Gemma Jones-Who played Mrs. Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (1995) portrayed Madam Pomfrey in “Harry Potter.” She and Jim Broadbent portrayed Bridget Jones's parents in the entire "Bridget Jones" Trilogy (2001-2016). Each "Bridget Jones" film also featured Shirley Henderson, who played Moaning Myrtle in "Harry Potter." 

Mark Williams-Who played Mr. Arthur Weasley in “Harry Potter,” appeared in Shakespeare in Love (1998) along with Imelda Staunton who portrayed the Nurse in that film. He also played the role of Horace in Disney’s live-action adaptation of 101 Dalmatians (1996) opposite Hugh Laurie as Jasper, who portrayed Imelda Staunton’s husband, Mr. Palmer in Sense and Sensibility (1995). 

Bill Nighy-Portrayed the role of musician Billy Mack in Love Actually (2003). He appeared in About Time (2013) opposite Domhnall Gleeson and Richard Griffiths.

Domhnall Gleeson-Appeared in Brooklyn (2015) along with Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters.

Disney’s Greatest Pairs: Part 2

Ed Wynn and his son, Keenan Wynn, were another one of many talented pairs, frequently hired by the Walt Disney Studios, though this time from the same family! They appeared opposite each other in The Absent-Minded Professor (1961) and its sequel Son of Flubber (1963), and acted individually in a number of other special Disney films. In every film that he made for Disney, Keenan always played the arrogant, yet at the same time lovable, main antagonist. Besides playing Alonzo P. Hawk in “Flubber 1 and 2,” he starred as Martin Ridgeway in Snowball Express (1972), reprised his role as Alonzo Hawk a second time for Herbie Rides Again (1974), the sequel to The Love Bug (1968), and played Mr. John Slade in The Shaggy D.A. (1976), the sequel to The Shaggy Dog (1959).

While Keenan always played the villain, Ed would play the lovable, supporting clown/uncle/fatherly figure. He made his Disney debut as the voice of the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland (1951). He starred as the Toymaker in Babes in Toyland (1961), released the same year as “Flubber 1” where he played the Fire Chief. He also played A.J. Allen in “Flubber 2.” What followed after that role was arguably, his most popular one: Mary Poppins’s laughing Uncle Albert in Mary Poppins (1964). He portrayed Mr. Hofstedder the jeweler the following year in That Darn Cat! (1965) and made his final Disney appearance in The Gnome-Mobile (1967), released on July 19th, 1967. That film was released a year after his death on June 19th, 1966, and interestingly, Walt Disney’s own death followed 6 months later on December 15th, 1966. In addition to each of these films, Ed was also a character in the Disneyland production, The Golden Horseshoe Revue (1955).

Before making Disney movies, Ed emboldened his son to become an actor, and they both starred together in the Playhouse 90 television production of Rod Serling’s Requiem for a Heavyweight (1956). Ed had seriously been considering retiring at this time, but the production was well-received, and Keenan encouraged his father to not retire and to simply alter his career. Keenan also assisted his father in overcoming a divorce, nervous breakdown and career collapse as well, all of which was happening around the time of this production. Father and son remained close until Ed’s death,  and Keenan’s death came 20 years after his father, on October 14th, 1986.

Keenan and Ed Wynn might not have been quite as popular a pair as Tommy Kirk and Kevin Corcoran were as onscreen brothers, but the Wynns did know how to play humorous characters whether they were good or evil. The fact that they could do that served as a very redeeming quality for each of the films that they made for they Disney studios.

The Disney Princesses of Les Miserables

“Hollywood Ghost Voices,” or actors who singing voices were dubbed in for actors in movie-musicals who couldn’t sing, has been a favorite topic in this blog. Did you happen to know, however, that the Walt Disney Studios also had to hire a number of “ghost voices” for their animated musicals? The speaking and singing voices of Princess Jasmine in Aladdin (1992), Pocahontas in Pocahontas (1995), and Mulan in Mulan (1998) were all voiced by 3 different pairs of actresses.

Linda Larkin provided the speaking voice of Princess Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) while Disney hired Lea Salonga to sing the part. Lea Salonga was hired a second time to provide the singing voice of Mulan in Mulan (1998) while Ming-Na Wen spoke that part. Irene Bedard voiced Pocahontas in Pocahontas (1995) while Judy Kuhn was hired by Disney to sing that part. Judy Kuhn reprised her role as the singing voice of Pocahontas for the direct-to-video sequel, Pocahontas 2: Journey to a New World, while Salonga was replaced by Liz Callaway for the singing voice of Princess Jasmine for the direct-to-video sequels, The Return of Jafar (1994) and Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996). Salonga did however return to the singing voice of Mulan in the direct-to-video sequel, Mulan 2 (2004), which also featured Kuhn as the singing voice of the character of Princess Ting Ting. Kuhn can also be spotted as the pregnant woman with kids in Enchanted (2007) (when Prince Edward goes in search of Princess Giselle.) Kuhn and Salonga also share another interesting coincidence…

Kuhn and Salonga both starred on Broadway in the Musical Les Miserables at different points in their careers. Kuhn originated the role of Cosette in the original Broadway production, which opened in 1987. She reprised her role in the 10th Anniversary Concert of the musical at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England. That performance also happened to star Salonga as Eponine, who had begun playing that role in 1993 (around the time when Aladdin (1992) was in production at Disney). She began playing the role of Fantine on Broadway in 2007, and starred as Fantine in the 25th Anniversary Concert in London.

I’ll bet you never would have thought that Mulan and Jasmine were voiced by the same person, or that that person would star in the same Broadway musical opposite another Disney princess. Both actresses sang songs in these movie-musicals that won the Oscars for Best Original Song. Salonga sang the duet “A Whole New World,” in Aladdin (1992), with Brad Kane, and Kuhn sang the solo “Colors of the Wind,” in Pocahontas (1995). The songs from Mulan (1998) garnered no Oscars, but the film did receive a nomination for Best Original Score. The singing voices of both of these lovely talents significantly helped make each film the classics that they are. 

Susan Egan: The Stage and Screen Disney Princess

Susan Egan is a Broadway, television, and film actress who is best known for portraying two Disney princesses. She originated the role of Belle in Beauty and the Beast on Broadway in 1993 (earning her a Tony Award Nomination) and she voiced Meg in the movie Hercules (1997). In addition to these two roles, she provided the voice of Lin in Disney’s Spirited Away (2001), starred in the Disney Channel Original Movie Gotta Kick it Up! (2002), and provided the singing voice (not the speaking voice) of Angel in the direct-to-video sequel, Lady and the Tramp 2: Scamp’s Adventure (2001). She reprised her role as Meg in Disney’s Video Game Kingdom Hearts 2 (2005).

Egan’s career has had many “star turns.” After portraying Belle on Broadway for one year, she replaced Natasha Richardson as Sally Bowles in Cabaret in 1999. She recreated the role of Belle for the Los Angeles production of Beauty and the Beast in 1995, along with many of the other Broadway cast members. She portrayed Maria in The Sound of Music in 1996 at the Sacramento Music Circus and as Molly Brown in The Unsinkable Molly Brown in 2002. On television, she portrayed Nikki Cox’s best friend, Mary in Nikki (2000-2002). She also acted in the romantic comedy, 13 Going on 30 (2004). 

I had the rare privilege of getting to meet Ms. Egan recently (more on that later). I took a cruise aboard the ship known as the Disney Wonder of the Disney Cruise Line where she was giving a concert. She began by introducing herself and singing “Almost There” from The Princess and the Frog (2009). She also sang a medley of Judy Garland songs (i.e “Over the Rainbow,” “The Trolley Song”), and a medley of Disney princess songs (“Colors of the Wind,” “God Help the Outcasts,” and “Let it Go”), and also a medley of “Beauty/Beast” songs (“Belle,” “Be Our Guest,” “Beauty and the Beast,”). All throughout her songs, she told stories about her career, many of which were quite humorous.

My personal favorite was the one about how fortunate she was to land the role of Meg in Hercules (1997). She had been auditioning for the female leading roles for every Disney Animated Feature since Beauty and the Beast (1991). Alan Menken, who had previously collaborated with Egan on the Broadway adaptation of “Beauty/Beast” (and who was to compose the music for Hercules (1997)) told her that she would not be right for the role of Meg, because the character was a wisecracking, sarcastic, smart aleck who was nothing at all like Belle. Susan Egan, actually is a very sarcastic, wisecracker in real life, and so the role of Meg was very easy for her to identify with, and Menken ultimately revoked his previous opinion, bringing her into read for the part, and she was cast. Menken, along with David Zippel (lyricist of Mulan (1998)) initially wrote a ballad for Egan to sing as Meg entitled “I Can’t Believe My Heart,” which she was very thrilled about singing. However, Ken Duncan, who was the supervising animator for Meg noticed that the song was out of character for Meg, because it just didn’t fit her personality. Menken and Zippel then went on to compose the song “I Won’t Say I’m In Love,” which wound up being used in the movie. Ms. Egan sang the song at the concert I attended, and Disney was kind enough to donate the scene from the film to the ship for the concert, sans audio, for our viewing pleasure.

On the very last day of the cruise, I got the chance to meet her and tell her how much I loved her concert. I said to her that she gave the greatest concert I’ve ever been to in my life, and she replied “You are so kind,” thanked me immensely, and then wrote the words “Love to Aaron: Susan Egan, Broadway Belle and Meg.”