Harry Potter actor Alex Crockford, who played Charlie Weasley in the films, has congratulated the new star taking on the role in HBO’s reboot after racking up a runtime of just over one second across the eight-film franchise.
Crockford played Charlie, the second oldest brother in the wizarding family, in 2004’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, appearing briefly in a photograph of the Weasley family on holiday in Egypt that appears in a newspaper. While a further five films were released, Charlie never made another appearance.
It seems that the character will be playing a bigger role in the forthcoming TV adaptation, however, with 25-year-old Gilby taking on the part.
Posting to social media to congratulate his successor, Crockford wrote: “Aaaah. The moment has come to pass on the dragon-wrangling kit to the new guy!
“Congratulations sir, and I hope you get more screen time than I did (the record to beat is 1.5 seconds!) #jenesuispascharlieanymore.”
When asked by a Potter fan whether he appeared in the newspaper photo in the third film, Crockford replied: “Indeed. I’m afraid they didn’t actually fly us out to Egypt though.”
Despite being absent in most of the films, Charlie is mentioned several times in JK Rowling’s novels and is described as a former Hogwarts student who works with dragons in Romania.
Crockford left acting after playing the uncredited role and studied law, becoming senior counsel at a London law firm. He is also the author of last year’s The Time Capsule Murders: A Cambridge Mystery.
Aaaah. The moment has come to pass on the dragon-wrangling kit to the new guy! Congratulations sir, and I hope you get more screen time than I did (the record to beat is 1.5 seconds!) #jenesuispascharlieanymore https://t.co/8N9yvLIXz2
— Alex Crockford (@gingerwandrer) October 27, 2026
His successor already has a number of credits to his name. The young actor played a young J.RR Tolkien in the 2019 film Tolkien and also starred in BBC Two’s The Last Kingdom.
Gilbery’s Harry Potter casting was announced on Tuesday (27 October), with HBO also revealing that Broadchurch’s Jasper Talbot and Malpractice’s Hannah Chinn will be playing James and Lily Potter.
The new series is set to arrive on HBO Max on Christmas Day, with Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout and Arabella Stanton making their debuts as Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermoine Granger, respectively.
They are joined in the cast by the likes of Paapa Essiedu (Professor Severus Snape), John Lithgow (Professor Albus Dumbledore) and Janet McTeer (Professor Minerva McGonagall).
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