Lox Pratt is the new Draco Malfoy in HBO's Harry Potter series. The British teenager takes over the role that Tom Felton played in all eight original films, beginning with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone at Christmas 2026.
The short video above gives viewers a useful early look at Pratt's acting. It comes from Lord of the Flies, where he plays Jack, a proud choir leader who becomes increasingly controlling and violent after a group of schoolboys is stranded on an island.
The clip is not from Harry Potter. Pratt is playing a different character in a different series, but the cold delivery and open contempt make it easy to imagine him insulting Harry, Ron, or Hermione at Hogwarts.
“You talk too much. Shut up, Fatty.” — Lox Pratt as Jack in Lord of the Flies
Who is Lox Pratt?
Pratt was 14 when his two major television roles introduced him to a much wider audience in 2026. Lord of the Flies and Harry Potter are his first two screen credits, although he had already acted in pantomimes, joined a drama group, made short films with his brothers, and directed a small project called Three Blue Boats.
He found Lord of the Flies through an open casting call and first auditioned for Ralph, the boy elected leader after the plane crash. The production instead asked him to read for Jack. Pratt later said he built the character with influences from Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders and Malcolm McDowell's performance in A Clockwork Orange.
The four-part Lord of the Flies series was written by Jack Thorne and directed by Marc Munden. Filming took place in Malaysia, where more than 30 young actors worked in rainforests and on remote islands. David McKenna plays Piggy, Winston Sawyers plays Ralph, Ike Talbut plays Simon, and Thomas Connor plays Roger.
Jack is not simply loud or cruel. He wants control, resents Ralph's authority, and learns how fear can pull the other boys toward him. Pratt said he also looked for the moments when Jack is ashamed or scared, because those details explain why his confidence sometimes breaks.
What Lox Pratt has said about his version of Draco
HBO has already shown Pratt in costume as Draco. He has the character's pale blond hair, black Hogwarts robes, and Slytherin uniform, but the television series will have much more time to show his life outside Harry's point of view.
Pratt said the series includes scenes inside the Malfoy home. That matters because the first book introduces Draco as an arrogant child who repeats his family's beliefs, while later books show how fear of his father, his family name, and Voldemort's demands affect his decisions.
“There are some brilliant scenes at home where you start to get an insight into how he is.” — Lox Pratt
Johnny Flynn plays Draco's father, Lucius Malfoy. Finn Stephens plays Vincent Crabbe and William Nash plays Gregory Goyle, the two Slytherin students usually seen beside Draco. The extra family material should help viewers understand how Draco learned his ideas about blood status and why disappointing Lucius frightens him.
Pratt has described the film version of Draco as more two-dimensional because the movies had limited time and mainly followed Harry. That was a comment about the amount of material available, not a criticism of Felton's performance. The HBO adaptation can spend an entire season on each book, giving supporting characters more scenes.
Tom Felton is still part of Draco's story
Tom Felton is not leaving Draco behind. He began playing the character in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, released in 2001, and appeared in every film through Deathly Hallows — Part 2 in 2011. His sharp pronunciation of “Potter,” platinum hair, and tense scenes with Lucius helped define the screen version of Draco for a generation.
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Felton returned as an adult Draco in the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in November 2025. The play is set years after the Battle of Hogwarts and follows Draco as the father of Scorpius Malfoy. His final extension keeps him in the role at New York's Lyric Theatre through January 3, 2027.
Felton also contacted Pratt and his parents. He did not try to tell the younger actor how to copy his performance. Instead, he offered practical support and encouraged Pratt to enjoy an experience that now comes with much more public attention than the original child cast faced in 2001.
“If you do need a word of encouragement or questions to ask, I’m there.” — Tom Felton
Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint also sent messages to the new generation. The original actors have been careful to let the HBO cast build their own versions of Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco.
The original Harry Potter movie cast
The HBO series is a new adaptation, not a continuation of the films. These are the main and supporting actors from the original eight-film story:
- Hogwarts students: Daniel Radcliffe (Harry), Rupert Grint (Ron), Emma Watson (Hermione), Tom Felton (Draco), Bonnie Wright (Ginny), Matthew Lewis (Neville), Evanna Lynch (Luna), James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George), Alfred Enoch (Dean), Devon Murray (Seamus), Katie Leung (Cho), Jessie Cave (Lavender), Freddie Stroma (Cormac), Robert Pattinson (Cedric), Clémence Poésy (Fleur), and Stanislav Yanevski (Viktor Krum).
- Professors and Hogwarts staff: Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), Alan Rickman (Snape), Maggie Smith (McGonagall), Richard Harris and Michael Gambon (Dumbledore), Warwick Davis (Flitwick and Griphook), Miriam Margolyes (Sprout), Kenneth Branagh (Lockhart), Emma Thompson (Trelawney), Jim Broadbent (Slughorn), and John Hurt (Ollivander).
- Harry's family and allies: Gary Oldman (Sirius), David Thewlis (Lupin), Natalia Tena (Tonks), Brendan Gleeson (Moody), Domhnall Gleeson (Bill), Julie Walters (Molly), Mark Williams (Arthur), Fiona Shaw (Petunia), Richard Griffiths (Vernon), Harry Melling (Dudley), and Ciarán Hinds (Aberforth).
- The Malfoys and Voldemort's followers: Jason Isaacs (Lucius), Helen McCrory (Narcissa), Ralph Fiennes (Voldemort), Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix), and Timothy Spall (Peter Pettigrew).
Who else is in HBO's Harry Potter cast?
Dominic McLaughlin plays Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton plays Hermione Granger, and Alastair Stout plays Ron Weasley. John Lithgow is Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer is Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu is Severus Snape, and Nick Frost is Rubeus Hagrid.
The announced students also include Rory Wilmot as Neville Longbottom, Leo Earley as Seamus Finnigan, Elijah Oshin as Dean Thomas, Tristan Harland as Fred Weasley, Gabriel Harland as George Weasley, Ruari Spooner as Percy Weasley, Alessia Leoni as Parvati Patil, and Sienna Moosah as Lavender Brown.
Warwick Davis is returning as Filius Flitwick, making him one of the few performers connected to both screen casts. Katherine Parkinson plays Molly Weasley, Bel Powley and Daniel Rigby play Petunia and Vernon Dursley, Amos Kitson plays Dudley, and Bertie Carvel plays Cornelius Fudge.
When does the new Harry Potter series come out?
The first season arrives at Christmas 2026 on HBO and HBO Max. It is titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and contains eight episodes. Francesca Gardiner writes and serves as showrunner, while Mark Mylod directs multiple episodes and executive produces.
The plan is to adapt the seven books across multiple seasons, with more time for characters and events that the films shortened or removed. A second season has already been ordered. HBO has not announced its release date.
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