Movie Musings: Disney and More

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.