Harry Potter Characters' Appearance In The Books Vs. The Movies

Film adaptations of popular books rarely please the majority of their existing fanbases, but Harry Potter succeeds in bringing the magic of J.K. Rowling's stories to life. Though the films occasionally stray from the source material, the essence of the story and its characters is very much there.

However, sometimes, details big and small can get lost in translation. Because of the nature of screen productions, casting actors who naturally look like their respective characters can be difficult. Selecting the right actors becomes even more challenging when they're expected to grow up onscreen, their appearances evolving in unexpected ways as they transition from childhood to adulthood. Thus, even after extensive casting, hair, and makeup procedures, some of the Harry Potter characters don't match up to their descriptions in the book - even some of the main characters.

10. Hermione Granger

Hermione is described in the books as having bushy hair and large buck teeth. Her hair is indeed one of her defining physical features in the films, but over the years, it seems to tame itself. Along with her teeth, her hair plays a role in her character's journey on the page. She tries to alter her appearance once or twice, and when a spell on her teeth goes wrong, it teaches her a lesson about vanity - but she succeeds in altering her appearance.

By the fourth book, Harry notices that Hermione seems to have done "something" to her hair. In the final films, Hermione's hair is stylishly wavy, and she definitely doesn't show any signs of having buck teeth. Emma Watson wore prosthetic teeth for a short time, but these were quickly abandoned. No mention of intentional alterations to her appearance is made in the films.

9. Neville Longbottom

In contrast to the tall, dark-haired young man Neville grows up to be, J.K. Rowling said in an interview that she pictures Neville as being short, plump, and blond. In the early films, actor Matthew Lewis matches this description quite well, aside from the hair. The casting department couldn't have predicted that Lewis would grow up to be tall and lean.

As for Neville's hair, his physical appearance isn't relevant to his journey throughout the series. Rather, his arc is defined by his growing self-confidence, and this has nothing to do with the way he looks.

8. Luna Lovegood

Luna is reasonably close in appearance to the way she's described in the books, but her overall look would be quite different if it matched the written description exactly.

Luna's hair in the films is closer to platinum blonde than the dirty blonde that Rowling chooses for her, and her eyes are blue rather than grey, as originally intended. As seen in the official Wizarding World illustration, Luna's eyes are large and protrude from their sockets, which simply isn't a feature that Evanna Lynch, who portrays Luna, has. Luna's eyebrows also don't look quite right; they're almost brown, whereas in the books they're just as pale as her hair.

7. Sirius Black

To match his name, Sirius Black's exterior is supposed to look ominous and menacing. As a recently escaped prisoner, Gary Oldman's performance is convincing, but his physical appearance isn't quite there.

In the books, the character's matted hair reaches to his elbows, his dark eyes are set in deep eye sockets, and his skin is stretched tightly over his cheekbones. Had Sirius really looked like this onscreen, he would be more terrifying and from his appearance alone, it would be clear that this is a man starved - literally and figuratively.

6. Lavender Brown

Lavender Brown's physical appearance isn't detailed in the books; Harry focuses more on her sentimental and sensitive personality. This aspect of his character isn't clear in the early films when she's played by Kathleen Cauley, then replaced by Jennifer Smith in The Prisoner Of Azkaban. Lavender Brown doesn't speak or play any role in the story until The Half-Blood Prince, when Jessie Cave takes on the role.

Since Lavender is a background character until the sixth film, the casting is not as important, which is why multiple actors can portray the same character - in fact, the character's name is more of a formality to maintain order on set. However, the choice to recast Lavender as white was seen as controversial and supported previous claims of the franchise's whitewashing.

5. Rubeus Hagrid

Hagrid may look menacing when he first appears in The Philosopher's Stone, but had he actually been eleven feet like he's supposed to be, he wouldn't even have been able to fit inside the abandoned house where the Dursleys have taken Harry. Had the production department chosen to be more accurate about his appearance, Hagrid's look may have contradicted his character too much.

Harry describes Hagrid as being "five times as wide" as a "normal" human being. Robbie Coltrane is only six feet tall, but with the help of movie magic, Hagrid appears to be around eight feet tall. He's still noticeably larger than a non-giant, but he's not as large as he's described to be in the books, likely because it would have been impractical and perhaps too scary-looking for a good guy.

4. Ron Weasley

Rupert Grint's Ron resembles the character's physical appearance only in his hair color. According to J.K. Rowling's description, Ron is gangly, tall, and thin, with a long nose and freckles, while in the films Ron isn't particularly tall and doesn't have a long nose or any freckles.

In any case, Ron's appearance doesn't have a lot to do with his storyline, except on the few occasions that Malfoy teases him for being a Weasley - and this has more to do with his clothes and belongings than his natural features. He's instantly recognizable because of his hair, and the only red-haired main characters in Harry Potter are the Weasleys.

3. The Dursleys

The Dursleys match their written descriptions reasonably well, except for Petunia and Dudley's hair. In the books, they are blond, but in the films, they have dark hair. This difference isn't jarring, nor does it affect the actors' portrayal of the characters.

Vernon matches his physical description to a tee, but this is likely because Richard Griffiths already resembled the character enough without drastic hair and makeup changes. Like most other characters, Dudley and Petunia's hair color doesn't affect their journey through the series, and the actors' performances are enough to convey the characters' personalities and motivations.

2. Voldemort

Though Voldemort looks unrealistic enough as it is, his features give the impression of being mangled, grotesque, and other. If he had scarlet eyes as per the books' descriptions, he would look so unnatural as to be almost ridiculous, bordering comical. Of course, Harry Potter is fantasy, but even so, there must be a line to separate magic from a spoof.

Of all of his features, Voldemort's nose is the most accurate, thanks to the VFX department. His skin, however, is supposed to be a few shades paler, though the special effects in the films make Ralph Fiennes look terrifying and unsettling enough as it is.

1. Harry Potter

Of all the Harry Potter characters, Harry is the one whose appearance plays the biggest role in his story. He often gets comments about how much he looks like his deceased parents. He's inherited his mother's eyes, which are green in the books, but Daniel Radcliffe's eyes are blue. This isn't a huge difference, and naturally green eyes are rare, but the significance of Harry's eyes is woven throughout the entire series.

Harry's hair is also a few shades off; in the books, it's always described as jet black, but in the films, it's brown. This doesn't make Harry a different character, but it may have irked some dedicated book fans upon the first film's premiere. The emotional impact of Harry's resemblance to his parents may have been more effective if the actors who played Lily and James looked more like Daniel Radcliffe. Because their time on screen is brief, this would have been more achievable than altering Radcliffe's appearance.