Brian Cox is living through the best time of his career: the Scottish actor is an Emmy-winning talent who's been given a lot of spotlight lately because of the outstanding HBO series Succession. At the same time, he's missed out on some pretty big roles. In his recently released memoir, Cox opens up about his career and reveals he was almost cast in Harry Potter.
It’s hard to imagine the Harry Potter series with different actors, especially given that casting for the films was always very thorough: author J.K. Rowling was adamant about having solely British talent involved in the films. In a recent excerpt from Cox’s memoir, “Putting the Rabbit in the Hat,” the actor explains that he almost played Mad-Eye Moody when the character first appeared in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
The deal might have been a career changer for Cox, although he never was lost on film roles. Mad-Eye Moody ended up being played by Brendan Gleeson, who returned for subsequent films Order of the Phoenix and Deathly Hallows Part 1. Seeming like a mentor to Harry Potter, Mad-Eye’s presence in the Goblet of Fire is actually subverted. The professor is, in fact, the villainous Barty Crouch Jr. masquerading as the famous Auror with polyjuice potion. Nevertheless, Harry does get to meet the real Moody in later installments.
In his memoir, Cox opens up about this particular casting episode:
"That’s another one they ask me about. Harry f**king Potter. I think someone had a burning cross held up for me not to be in Harry Potter, because all my pals were in it. I think the part I might have played was the one that Brendan Gleeson got, Mad-Eye Moody, but Brendan was more in fashion than I was at that point, and that’s very much the way of the world in my business, so he got it. Also, he’s much better than I would have been."
In such a big franchise, as Harry Potter has been for over two decades, it must have been difficult for such a talented actor as Cox to see most of his friends participating in the films and not being able to grab a role for himself. Nevertheless, he’s been involved in other big movies like the Bourne series, with Matt Damon, and Bryan Singer’s X-Men 2. He’s also worked with highly praised directors such as Spike Lee, whom he greatly admires, Spike Jonze and Wes Anderson.
In his memoir, the actor also reflects on other franchises he turned down like Game of Thrones. Here, he was offered the part of King Robert Baratheon, which he turned down given that the character would be killed in the first season and, therefore, "wouldn’t have had any of the benefits of the long-term effects of a successful series where your wages go up with each passing season." He also does not regret turning down the role of Governor in Pirates of the Caribbean, played by Jonathan Price, although he recognizes it would have been a "money-spinner."
He may have missed out on a few roles, but Brian Cox seems comfortable at the stage he’s in, mainly because of how well Succession is doing. One can easily say it is his most memorable character and one that still has much to give.