Harsh self-judgment
“My work is mediocre”: Harry Potter actor Gary Oldman would play his role as Sirius Black differently today
Actor Gary Oldman today criticizes his portrayal of “Harry Potter” character Sirius Black.
© Imago Images
For Harry Potter fans, Oscar winner Gary Oldman plays an important character in the film series: Sirius Black. More than ten years later, the actor makes a harsh judgment about his performance as Harry’s godfather.
The “Dark Knight” trilogy, the Churchill biography “The Darkest Hour” or most recently “Oppenheimer” – the list of films with Oscar winners Gary Oldman, 65, is tall. Harry Potter film fans know him as Sirius Black. The actor is known for self-criticism, and more than ten years later he is no longer happy about his role as a magician. His work was “mediocre,” he said in Josh Horowitz’s “Happy Sad Confused” podcast.
Sirius Black first appears in the film series in the third part “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”. Gary Oldman also plays Harry Potter’s godfather in the fourth, fifth and eighth films. Sirius Black is anything but a supporting player in the Harry Potter universe. At first, readers and viewers still believe that he is one of the bad guys. It is said that Sirius Black betrayed his closest friends, Lily and James Potter, to the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed little Harry Potter’s parents. However, it soon turns out that the opposite is the case. Sirius Black fell into a deception and sat innocently in the wizarding prison Azkaban for years – until he broke out. He proves his innocence to Harry, becomes an important father figure for the boy – and ultimately has to die at the end of the fifth film.
Gary Oldman as Sirius Black (right) is an important father figure for the film hero Harry Potter, played by Daniel Radcliffe.
© Imago Images
A terrible loss for fans of JK Rowling’s book series. Gary Oldman’s performance is celebrated by many. Now, however, the actor admitted that he is anything but satisfied with his own portrayal of Black.
Gary Oldman on his role as Siris Black: “My work is very mediocre”
On the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast he says: “I think my work in this is very mediocre. I really do.” In retrospect, the actor believes he would have played the role completely differently: “If I was like Alan (Alan Rickman as Professor Severus Snape) If I had read the books and known what was coming, I might have been one step ahead.”
In his eyes, however, it’s not a big deal. Gary Oldman says that he often criticizes himself after the fact. And he believes that you should fundamentally grow as an actor. “If I sat down and looked at myself and said, ‘My God, I’m great,’ it would be a very sad day. Because I want to make every next project even better than the last.”
Gary Oldman: “Harry Potter and Batman saved me”
And in principle, the actor doesn’t see his role as Sirus Black as something negative – on the contrary: he recently said on the “Drew Barrymore Show” that his roles in “Batman” and “Harry Potter” had saved him. He was able to film in his home country – a huge advantage as a divorced father in his early 40s with custody of his children. Oldman turned down some roles in order to be able to spend time with his children.
“Harry Potter” as a series: A new Sirius Black
It’s been more than a decade since Gary Oldman played Sirius Black. And what has been speculated on for a long time is now confirmed: the Harry Potter material will become a series. This means that when the time comes, there will be a new Sirius Black. The Harry Potter films are currently available for Amazon Prime users. And Gary Oldmans can currently be seen in the highly acclaimed Apple TV crime series Slow Horses – En Fall for Jackson Lamb.
Sources: “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, The Drew Barrymore Show, People