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While it’s been well over a decade since the Harry Potter film series reached its conclusion, the stars of the franchise are still widely recognized for their roles. That’s probably most true for Daniel Radcliffe, who portrayed the Boy Who Lives throughout all eight movies. It’s probably fair to say that his pitch-perfect portrayal of Harry will continue to resonate with fans and eventually reach future generations. That seems to be a notion that Radcliffe understands based on honest comments he recently shared about his Wizarding World legacy. At the same time, he also shed some light on some of the “deeply fucking weird” stuff he’s done more recently.
It goes without saying that the Potter franchise is what launched the British former child star’s career and is a major reason why he’s in the position he’s in today. Funny enough, he received pity after being cast as Harry, as some thought he’d be “screwed up” by the experience. That doesn’t seem to have been the case, though, as the veteran performer (who’s now a father) appears to be well adjusted. With that, comes the self-awareness of just how impactful his famous role has been and how it was necessary for him to seek out new challenges later on:
Harry Potter is going to be the first line of my obituary. I wanted to try as many different things under my belt, knowing that it was going to be the accumulation of all of those things, rather than one thing, that would actually sort of transition me in people’s minds.
No lies were told here, I’d say, as it’s very likely that when Daniel Radcliffe does die (hopefully, no time soon) that the name of J.K. Rowling’s book series will be dropped early in his obituary. What I appreciate, though, is the fact that he fully recognizes that that will be the case. Also, I love that he made it a goal to seek out different kinds of productions after his time headlining the billion-dollar IP was over. Regarding his creative choices, Radcliffe went on to tell the Atlantic:
I’ve realized over the years that if there’s a sweet spot to be found between deeply fucking weird and strange and almost unsettling, and kind of wholesome and earnest and very sincere, then that’s the stuff I really love doing. [Anything] that says something kind of lovely about human beings in spite of ourselves, in spite of how bad the world is.
Since forsaking those famous glasses, Daniel Radcliffe has taken on a number of intriguing film And TV roles, which have helped him flex various parts of his repertoire as an actor. Swiss Army Man, Iperium, Miracle Workers, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story and Guns Akimbo. He’s also taken on a lot of stage work, with one of his most recent gigs being the Broadway revival of (the lucrative) Merrily We Roll Along). A lot of the work is indeed “deeply fucking weird,” though much of it is also very entertaining and shows that the Jungle actor is a jack of all trades. And, while fans still laud his work within the Wizarding World, he’s garnered acclaim for his post-Potter roles. Even HP director David Yates has lauded Radcliffe for the creative swings he’s taken.
All in all, the Lost City star will indeed continue to be known for his turn as the famous, bespectacled wizard while he’s still on this Earth and when he’s not. Though I’d also argue that as his career continues to progress, he’ll also continue to gain recognition for the work he continues to do. I don’t know about all of you, but that’s a comforting thought for this Radcliffe fan.
Those who would like to check out his performances in the Harry Potter series can stream all eight movies using a Max subscription, and Peacock subscribers can check them out, too.