Gary Oldman Trashes His Most Beloved Role
Although it introduced an entirely new generation to his name, Gary Oldman is slamming his performance in the Harry Potter films, calling it “mediocre.” Sharing the blame with the book series’ writer, J.K. Rowling, Oldman says his unpreparedness came from a lack of knowing what was ahead for his character as well as his own failure of not reading the books.
Gary Oldman Didn’t Read The Books
In the movies, Gary Oldman played Sirius Black, a powerful wizard and father figure to the titular young wizard who lost both of his parents to the sinister Voldemort. Although his character was first introduced in the third installment, The Prisoner of Azkaban, the actor admits to not having read the book which came out five years prior to the film’s debut.
He adds that he wished he would’ve instead followed in the steps of the late, great Alan Rickman, who played Severus Snape, as he did his homework and kept up with the books.
He Thinks His Performance Would’ve Been Completely Different If He Read The Books
“I honestly think I would have played it differently,” Gary Oldman said of his massive regret of not doing the proper character study. Still, The Dark Knight star is forgiving of himself, adding that it would be “a very sad day” if he completely crushed a role.
His thought process is that if he makes the best film of his life, he knows that there’s nowhere else to go from there but down – which is fair but maybe reading at least one of the books would’ve been a good move.
Harry Potter And Batman Saved Gary Oldman
Gary Oldman’s comments about reflecting on his time as Sirius Black comes shortly after he revealed that the Harry Potter and Dark Knight franchises saved his career. The actor said that he was grateful for both projects as they gave him a set and flexible schedule so that he was able to be a good dad to his children. Following his 2015 divorce, Oldman was granted sole custody of the kids, a duty that he took very seriously.In his interview, Gary Oldman explained that Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight franchise gave him plenty of wiggle room to make the big bucks as Commissioner James Gordon while still being a parent. The actor said the same could be said for his time in the Harry Potter films. As Sirius Black was a supporting character, it made Oldman’s schedule easier to be around for filming and then jetting back to Los Angeles for family time.
Oldman Before Harry Potter
Although he’s been a name known the world round for his early career appearances in productions including Alex Cox’s Sid and Nancy, Oliver Stone’s JFK, and Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula, it was his time on the sets of Harry Potter and The Dark Knight Rises series that rejuvenated his career for a younger audience.
His Most Recent Projects
While he may not have thought that he nailed the role of Sirius Black, the giant following of Harry Potter fans likely have a difference in opinion. Appearing for a brief performance as President Harry S. Truman in Christopher Nolan’s 2023 summer blockbuster Oppenheimer, Gary Oldman doesn’t have any other film projects lined up. He can, however, be seen on Apple TV+’s spy thriller series, Slow Horses.
Source: Happy Sad Confused
