Daniel Radcliffe is one of the most recognizable stars in all of Hollywood. The actor, of course, made a name for himself through his role as the titular wizard in the Harry Potter franchise. Given the massive fanbase he’s amassed, many would probably be starstruck by the mere sight of him. But as it so happens, Radcliffe once found himself somewhat flustered while working with one of his Potter co-stars and, honestly, I can’t blame him at all.
With the 20th anniversary of the first Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone coming later this year, Daniel Radcliffe has been reflecting on his time within the iconic franchise. The actor recently appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and discussed some of the incredible actors he was able to work with. While Radcliffe explained that he wasn’t really intimidated by his co-stars as a child, he did reveal the one Oscar winner that did amaze him:
At the time I wasn’t starstruck by any of those people. The first person I remember being starstruck by was Gary Oldman, ’cause that was the age when I was aware of who he was and his work and also getting more serious about acting myself so, yeah, before that when you meet someone as a nine-year-old it’s sort of hard to, like, gain starstruckness of them later on.
Gary Oldman is an incredibly prolific actor and already had quite the resume when he joined the Wizarding World in 2004’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. So it’s totally understandable that a young Daniel Radcliffe would be somewhat in awe of the celebrated performer. The situation was probably even more tense at the start because Radcliffe shared some key scenes with Oldman.
In the Harry Potter film series, Gary Oldman played the role of Sirius Black, a longtime resident of Azkaban prison who was accused of selling out James (his best friend) and Lily Potter’s hiding place to Lord Voldemort. This was later proven to be false and Sirius eventually formed a close relationship with Harry, his godson. Though Black was killed off during the third actor of 2007’s Order of the Phoenix, he did return for a brief appearance in the franchise capper, Deathly Hallows - Part 2.
While Daniel Radcliffe may not have been intimidated by most of his co-stars, the same can’t be said for some of his fellow Harry Potter alums. Draco Malfoy actor Tom Felton, who never hesitates to share a sweet memory from the set, recalled being overwhelmed at the thought of working with the late, great Alan Rickman. And Evanna Lynch, who played fan-favorite Luna Lovegood, actually admitted to being nervous about acting with Radcliffe himself as well as Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.
In Daniel Radcliffe’s defense, he totally held his own acting opposite Gary Oldman in Prisoner of Azkaban, and their interactions honestly only improved as the series progressed. You’d expect nothing less from two talented stars and, hopefully, we’ll get to see the two team up again for another project in the near future.
Check out Daniel Radcliffe and Gary Oldman’s work by streaming all eight Harry Potter films on Peacock.
