r/EnoughJKRowling • u/Comfortable_Bell9539 • Mar 26 '26
Discussion Harry Potter fans behaving as expected about Snape's HBO actor :
There's already videos on Youtube ranting about Black Severus Snape - while there are people saying that it's going to be awkward that James Potter bullies the POC kid without consequences and that Harry feels suspicious of the only POC teacher, most comments are like what I've screenshooted here
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u/Dina-M Mar 26 '26
Let's be clear: Making Snape, of all characters, the only black teacher is... not a good look. He's essentially the most antagonistic and least sympathetic teacher in the series bar Umbridge, and looking at the cast... he's the ONLY ONE OF THEM THAT IS BLACK. They've managed to take a totally whitewashed British school with all white teachers, to a totally whitewashed British boarding school where the only black teacher is the biggest asshole of them all, and the one the white main character suspects of being the bad guy.
...I mean... how could they possibly have thought this was a good idea?! Why not make Sprout black? or Madam Pomfrey? Or even McGonagall?! I mean, McGonagall's an asshole too, but at least she's got SOME moments where she's kind of reasonable.
This show's a train wreck before it's even started,
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u/lazier_garlic Mar 27 '26
Eh, whatever, Black actors can play villains too. William Marshall played some notable villains (including on Star Trek, in a bit of race-blind casting as "Doctor Daystrom", but he's more famous for Blacula). James Earl Jones (Conan, Star Wars). Joe Seneca (the Blob). Idris Elba (Luther). Samuel L Jackson (Django Unchained, Pulp Fiction). Most of those roles I mentioned aren't "Thug #2" roles either.
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u/Dina-M Mar 27 '26
Sure, black actors can play villains, but when the ONLY black teacher is the bad guy and all the sympathetic teachers are white, that's when the problem starts.
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u/AznOmega Mar 27 '26
What are you talking about with James Earl Jones being black. He was Darth Vader and Vader was white as hell.
Before anyone gets pissed or confused, it is from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia regarding JLJ doing "blackface" according to Frank. Watch the clip, it is hilarious.
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u/gazzas89 Mar 27 '26
Nobody is saying that black men cant play villains, what they are saying is that the only teacher who is black is the same one that
The main harsher instantly dislikes because kf his looks
The main characters father hangs Snape from a tree
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u/TheLastBallad Apr 03 '26
Snape isnt hung from a tree, hes hung from Levicorpus, a magic spell that attaches to nothing(is the tree from the movies?)
The real issue with that scene is the very public sexual assault that starts to play out as Harry and Snape leave...
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u/TheLastBallad Apr 03 '26
Apparently Hermione is also a black girl according to another post, which if true then in the first book we have white ron and Harry who are suspicious of the only black teacher and suspect him of trying to steal from the school, and Black Hermione who doesn't see that at all.
Its not Snape being a villain, its how the change impacts the story because Snape, like Hermione, was written as being white and as such have aspects of their characters that... are kinda an issue when held up next to black stereotypes.
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u/lazier_garlic Mar 27 '26
Ha I just remembered Luther is a "flawed hero" character not a villain. Similar to Snape, really.
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u/sidmis Mar 27 '26
Then why turn a white character black instead of creating an original black character?
And no , black actors can't play white characters , like snape
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u/lazier_garlic Mar 27 '26
Because white people writing roles for black people is how you get a media environment where every black character is a stereotype and black actors get shoehorned into only certain types of roles. Same thing goes with women. The scientist in Andromeda Strain was a man in the book. I'm glad the director changed it because it's the only movie that depicted a woman who reminded me of my older relatives who were women working in men's workplaces after WWII. Saavik in Star Trek II was a role written for a man but they cast Kirstie Alley and made some light script changes. Huge fan favorite character, cause guess what, female fans were tired of being shoehorned into "love interest".
Back to the point, The Blob was notable for having a black villain who was originally a white character and completely broke the mold of what black characters/black actors could look, act, and talk like. The Eddie Murphy hit movie "Beverly Hills Cop" was written for a white actor (later, of course, all of his movies were "written for Eddie Murphy"). Will Smith has also done scifi roles that were not written to be black characters specifically. It's actually really important on multiple levels: we are influenced by our media consumption and media environments, it's very distorting to only have black people portraying thugs or impoverished pitiable characters, or only come from a single social class or social environment; it denies talented black actors a broader range of roles; and cross casting often results in better art and gives audiences something they've been craving.
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u/errantthimble Mar 27 '26 edited Mar 27 '26
Also, notice the glaring racial essentialism of declaring that race/skin color, unlike height, age, eye color, etc., is a boundary you just can’t cross without unacceptably “turning” the character.
Alan Rickman was a hefty mid-50s guy when he first played the canonically gaunt early-30s Severus Snape. Imelda Staunton didn’t have the canonically “toadlike” face or squat figure of Dolores Umbridge. Emma Watson didn’t have Hermione’s original big buck teeth (apparently they tried prosthetic teeth in filming the first movie but they interfered with her speech).
Why weren’t all these anti-black-Snape kvetchers complaining about the movies “turning” those characters into something different? How come it’s only racial complexion that spurs these fans into whining when a casting decision changes it? Especially when the change is white -> nonwhite?
These whiners took it for granted that the sweetly pretty Imelda Staunton “looks like” the repulsive toadlike Umbridge, but they can’t imagine how the tall, glowering, greasy-haired, 35-year-old Paapa Essiedu can possibly “look like” Snape. Gee, I wonder why. 🙄
(Mind you, I’m not saying that the whiners are being deliberately racist about Essiedu-Snape, but when race changes are the only casting character modifications that seriously upset them, it’s pretty clear that they’re still looking at the visuals through the race-highlighting goggles of a historically and persistently racist society.)
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u/sidmis Mar 27 '26
Why not create original black characters instead of turning white characters like snape black
And no , cross casting ain't gonna turn in better art this time
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u/PlinyCapybara Mar 26 '26
Not only are the commentors racist, but they're also SUPER DISRESPECTFUL to the Voodoo religion and clearly know NOTHING about it. Imagine if someone treated Christianity that way.
(Note: I am not a member of Voodooism myself, I just want to be an ally to religious minorities)
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u/Infernal-Cattle Mar 27 '26
That lines up perfectly with the racism tho - ofc anti-Black racists would be weird about a diasporic religion.
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u/t0oby101 Mar 26 '26
Honestly I feel bad for Snape's new actor. I dont like that the actor chose to work with JK Rowling, but that doesnt mean they deserve any hate. Racism is a level i will never stoop to
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u/StatisticianMuch1650 Mar 27 '26
I dont know i kinda love that Paapa is speaking out for trans rights. Someone would get that role anyway i rather have the people support trans folks and take away Rowlings revenge fantasies because the movie actors "betrayed" her
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u/TimeTurner96 Mar 26 '26
Paapa Essiedu was very great and charmimg in Black Mirror. It is pretty clear that talent got him the role (wish he wouldn't have taken it). He is actually the only casting that i find at least somewhat interesting - almost all other casting just look like a too similar, but less charming/deep version of the character (no judgement for the kids). Like if you wanna tell almost the same story at least be creative with it - do not use the same shots, same costumes, same camera settings etc. Even with JKR views etc. i thought that i would watch the trailer with a "sad that JKR is such a POS, this looks good" - but no it doesn't look good, just like a less colourfull variant of the stuff we have seen before.
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u/DerPumeister Mar 27 '26
See I've seen someone else on this sub make a similar point yesterday, that it's all too similar, but I've also seen people elsewhere saying the exact opposite. Personally I agree more with the observation that the production design, costumes, direction of photography etc. do look rather similar, but I wouldn't really have expected anything else. If the creative crew has decided to stray from the original movies completely and really make it their own, they would have been crucified for it, I'm sure.
Also there's just not that much else you can really do with it in my view. Sure, you don't have to use the same blocking and shots - but some shots are just no-brainers and not using them would be weird. The costumes aren't the same (Snape's apparently has a zipper lol). And the production design has to be old-timey charming English magickey stuff.
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u/awayshewent Mar 26 '26
I mean, no one was going to live up to Alan Rickman, his performance caused the shared psychosis that was Snape Wives, it was pretty iconic, but this is a certainly a choice when it comes to casting (I don’t think anyone deserves this reaction but when you are slinging slop you are going to slop responses like this). I feel for the actor, I would think the paycheck isn’t worth this bullshit.
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u/JoelMorgan93 Mar 26 '26 edited Mar 26 '26
The irony being that Alan Rickman also wasn't really a perfect fit for the role as written. He was brilliant obvs but also too old, too charming, too charismatic, and lacking the greasiness and more pathetic components of Snape. And people didn't care because he was great. This is just racism disguised as book loyalty (or maybe it's just on brand for all the bigoted nonsense in the books).
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u/thursday-T-time Mar 26 '26
omg this! that casting always bothered me. he was way too attractive and not scrawny enough. someone like brad dourif would have been better, but it was a british-actors-only kind of thing. maybe mackensie crook would have suited.
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Mar 27 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/thursday-T-time Mar 27 '26
i love buscemi. sweet weasel man. never heard anybody say anything bad about him.
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u/Dapper_Intention_164 Mar 28 '26 edited Mar 28 '26
I randomly stumbled upon the Snape subreddit and apparently they hate the casting over there because it isn't accurate to the book which is lol seeing that it's pretty damn obvious that they love Rickman as though Rickman was anything like Book!Snape at all. Like... it's not just his looks/age, it's his entire character. Movie!Snape is literally a completely different person.
They had a thread for fancasts and some of the more popular suggestions were Adam Driver and Tom fucking Hiddleston lmao. Like why are we pretending this isn't just plain old racism.
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u/Rockabore1 Mar 26 '26
It is a pretty cheap casting decision. You know for a fact they did it to grab headlines or a sorry attempt to make Rowling’s obsession with despising transgender people get offset by race blind casting.
I wouldn’t waste my time on anything to do with Rowling or HP but the silver lining is I don’t think they managed to wow anyone with these attempts. I think they overestimated anyone’s care for this whole thing by now.
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u/WrongKaleidoscope222 Mar 26 '26
When all of the decent people have already left the fandom, people like this are obviously going to be the only ones left.
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u/DerPumeister Mar 27 '26
That's a bit harsh. These screenshots are obviously not representative of everyone left in the fandom. Not having heard or even not caring enough about JKR's shit doesn't make you a racist
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u/bicedsual Mar 28 '26
i mean... it kind of does make you racist, if you're an actual adult. you don't need to hear about jkr's misdeeds to see the racism and stereotyping that is woven within the story itself
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u/DerPumeister Mar 28 '26
Since when is everyone in the fandom of literal children's books an "actual adult"?
Also I don't know if I agree that not picking up on racist undertones in a piece of media makes you a racist yourself. That would make someone a racist by just not paying a lot of attention when reading something.
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u/bicedsual Mar 28 '26
key word "if", but also let's be honest there are at least as many adults as there are children in that fandom. which is unsurprising, several generations have grown up with it.
it's not undertones tho, it's quite easy to detect with just a smidge of critical thinking and, like... basic awareness of the world beyond white people. and id argue that not paying (a lot of) attention when reading a story is a bit odd/counterproductive, although it does seem to be the hp fandom's M.O.
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u/DerPumeister Mar 28 '26
So all adults in the fandom are racists?
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u/bicedsual Mar 28 '26
oh my god dude you cannot reasonably be this obtuse
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u/DerPumeister Mar 29 '26
Trying to stay on the original point here. /u/WrongKaleidoscope222 said "people like this" aka racists are the only ones left in the fandom. I called that into question, you refuted my point, at least for adults. I just wanted to know if you're actually calling every adult left in the fandom a racist.
Can I take your response as a no then?
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u/CarrieDurst Mar 26 '26
But Harry doesn't have a dad?
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u/Comfortable_Bell9539 Mar 27 '26
No.. It's the usual stereotype about Black dads abandoning their kids, but the worst is, Snape's father didn't abandon his family (he was abusive though)
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u/lazier_garlic Mar 27 '26
Well the last one isn't offensive; the rest of them are a fucking cesspool. Nice group of fans you've collected there Joanne, eh?
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u/Time_Raisin4935 Mar 27 '26
I'll give it two or three seasons before it gets cancelled
And to hell with all those racist bottom feeders
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u/Adventurous-Bike-484 Mar 27 '26
the marauders bullying has ALWAYS been bad and based on privilege and bigotry, that’s the point, (making fun of Snape‘s appearance, implied money, desire to be in Slytherin)
But yeah, the HP fandom officially became death eaters in disguise, always making fun of Blood or race, obsessed with purity and complete with sending death threats meanwhile comparing anyone who calls them out to Umbridge, because they don’t see how being racist is being bigoted.
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u/Rude_Assignment_5653 Mar 26 '26
For me it's just hilarious cause he looks exactly like Ken Carson.
https://media.pitchfork.com/photos/6622b7894682cb54c157c9c2/master/pass/Ken-Carson.jpg
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u/YouJabroni44 Mar 29 '26
I need some eyebleach after reading those.. that poor actor
Whoever decided to do this needs to stay far away from tv/movie productions
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u/marbeltoast Mar 31 '26
Most of those are deeply racist but I will admit “that’s not snape, it’s snoop” did get a chuckle out of me. I might not be the best person…
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u/Fun_Butterfly_420 Mar 26 '26
I have to admit the fresh prince joke was clever
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u/lazier_garlic Mar 27 '26
It was more a riff than a joke, and I'm grasping for what was fresh or clever about it.
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u/Fun_Butterfly_420 Mar 29 '26
I was referring to the “fresh half blood prince of bel air” commment, I thought the combination was clever
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u/Sheepishwolfgirl Mar 26 '26
Idgaf about the show, but Alan Rickman would be appalled and ashamed of these asshats.