Daniel Radcliffe is famous for his role as Harry Potter, but he almost played the Cowardly Lion in a remake of The Wizard of Oz. He described the idea as one of the worst he’d ever heard and turned it down. Interestingly, his Harry Potter co-stars, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, were also considered for roles in this unusual take on the classic story. While the lion in the original tale seeks courage, Radcliffe found the nerve to decline the part.
While still filming the Harry Potter movies and preparing for their roles as Harry, Hermione, and Ron, the three lead actors were pitched another fantasy project – one that would have taken them from Hogwarts to the world of Oz. However, Daniel Radcliffe recently shared with Sean Evans on Hot Ones that he immediately knew it wasn’t a good fit, even though he was very young and just starting his career. He remembers cringing at the idea at the time.
Someone actually pitched a remake of The Wizard of Oz during the Harry Potter years, and they wanted me, Emma, and Rupert to star! Emma was supposed to be Dorothy, and I think Rupert had another role. I was going to play the Cowardly Lion, but with a twist – they wanted me to do karate! I was about 14 or 15 at the time, and even then I knew it was a terrible idea and shouldn’t be made.
Despite plans for a new Wizard of Oz movie starring Daniel Radcliffe falling through, Hollywood continues to revisit the classic story. Over the years, we’ve seen many adaptations and spin-offs, like Sam Raimi’s Oz the Great and Powerful, which explored the Wizard’s backstory. More recently, Jon M. Chu directed a two-part film adaptation of the popular Broadway musical Wicked, featuring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. Those two films earned a massive $1.2 billion worldwide, making us wonder how successful Radcliffe’s version might have been – but perhaps it’s best we don’t dwell on what could have been.
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2026-02-20 17:07