News · Television
Nicholas Hoult Is Gilderoy Lockhart, Enough Said, I’m Sold!
By Peter David · August 11, 2026 · Cobra Kai Never Lies
One of my favorite actors is headed to Hogwarts as one of the best supporting characters in the entire Harry Potter series. I really don’t need much more convincing than that.
Nicholas Hoult has officially been cast as Gilderoy Lockhart in Season 2 of HBO’s Harry Potter series, which will tackle Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Slap a sticker on my forehead and call me sold.
I’ve been a Nicholas Hoult fan since About a Boy. I'm talking way back when he was the weird little kid opposite Hugh Grant in the 2002 movie, which remains one of my favorite movies and is based on one of my favorite books. I’ve basically watched Hoult grow from that kid into one of those actors whose name alone is enough to get my attention.
When he was cast as Hank McCoy in X-Men: First Class, I was thrilled. I love Beast, and Hoult absolutely worked for me in the role.
Then came Lex fucking Luthor.
I thought Hoult was great in James Gunn’s Superman and a damn step up from Jesse Eisenberg. His Lex actually felt like Lex Luthor — brilliant, obsessive, dangerous and completely convinced he should be the most important guy in the room.
So what do you do after playing Beast and Lex Luthor?
Apparently you go teach Defense Against the Dark Arts.
To me, this casting makes sense. Lockhart has to be charming enough that people actually buy his bullshit. He’s arrogant, vain, cowardly and completely committed to the Gilderoy Lockhart brand even when almost everything underneath it is bullshit.
That seems to be a good playground for Nicholas Hoult.
Kenneth Branagh was great as Lockhart in the 2002 movie, but I don’t need Hoult doing a Branagh impression. Hoult has shown plenty of times that he can be funny, ridiculous and dangerous without pushing any of it too hard. Let him find his own version of Lockhart.
But my favorite part of this whole thing might be that Hoult has apparently been trying to get into Hogwarts for about 25 years.
He originally auditioned to play Harry Potter, made it through multiple callbacks, and later auditioned for Draco Malfoy. He of course didn’t get either one.
Hoult later joked about gradually auditioning for Harry Potter roles until they basically told him no.
Well, somebody finally said yes.
It just took them a couple of decades.
