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‘Harry Potter’: Who Played Dumbledore, Hagrid, Snape and Other Wizards?

Tom Felton, Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint
attends the premiere of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2’ at Avery Fisher Hall on Monday, July 11, 2011 in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini)
Film Harry Potter Fan Mian
attends the premiere of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2' at Avery Fisher Hall on Monday, July 11, 2011 in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini)

One last movie, one last adventure, and one last showdown with his lifelong nemesis, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” was released at midnight to scores of fans waiting outside movie theaters across the nation.

The end has come for the Harry Potter money train and now that the questions have all been answered those who grew up reading the books are just as lost as the characters who spent nearly a decade filming it.

Fans fell in love with not only the “boy who lived” but his friends, classmates, teachers, and family members. Where do they go from here?

Harry, Ron, and Hermione played by Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson have spent half of the lives on the set of a magical movie that has accumulated billions of dollars.

The three stars have bonded for 10 years and formed an insurmountable friendship, and although they will all be off living their post Harry Potter lives they will still remain close. Reuters reported Radcliffe as saying, “I do think the bond between me and Rupert and Emma is pretty unbreakable, because I don’t think anyone knows what it’s like to go through this craziness”.

For the three young actors the series offered them their first real glimpse at stardom and a cemented role in a famous movie. However, for some of the more seasoned actors this was just another addition to their already experienced resume.

Alan Rickman, the potions master, began his career in 1987 and has been a part of nearly 50 movies such as “Love Actually”, “Alice in Wonderland”, and “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.” Readers and viewers alike were captivated by his performance as an eerie and sneaky professor, although many could not decide whether to love or hate him.

Maggie Smith, who played Professor McGonagall, burst onto the scene in 1955 and has also had her share of experience, with two Oscars and 25 awards under her belt, playing a number of characters on over 70 productions throughout the years like “Nanny McPhee Returns,” “The Secret Garden,” and “Sister Act”. The stern professor of transfiguration is intimidating and strict and yet it was her soft side that fans learned to love.

Michael Gambon, who plays Albus Dumbeldore, was not originally cast as the Hogwarts Headmaster but after the passing of the original actor, Richard Harris, following the release of the first movie the character needed to be re-casted. Gambon played a similar character as a wizard, Gandalf the gray, in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

Arthur and Molly Weasley played by Mark Williams and Julie Walters were an extraordinary pair or talent whose characters offered a home and motherly/fatherly love to the boy who started it all.

The adorable giant who stole the hearts of fans across the world, Rubeus Hargid, played by Robbie Coltrane, is a notable actor and comedian who played in successful films like “James Bond” and “Van Helsing”.

The great franchise is over but the characters will live in fans that will remain true and wait for J.K Rowling’s next “Harry Potter”.