With the new Harry Potter TV series expected in 2027, the grown-up talent behind the original movies have recently been asked about passing the torch to a new group of young actors. The latest of the bunch is Katie Leung, who played Cho Chang in four of the movies. While some of the Harry Potter actors have talked about sending their counterparts letters, Leung shared different thoughts on it.
The 38-year-old is returning to the spotlight in a big way with a role in Bridgerton Season 4. During an interview with The Independent, Leung said this in response to whether she’d be sending out a letter to whoever nabs the role of Cho Chang:
I think I would only give her advice if she wanted it from me because I don’t want to underestimate her. I think it’s really important to have fun and not be kind of dragged down by the noise, and whatever may be mean to her.
The new Harry Potter actor, Dominic McLaughlin, previously revealed that one day, he was surprised by his dad with a letter from Daniel Radcliffe wishing him well on taking on the role after him. Rupert Grint also said he wrote a letter to the new Ron Weasley, Alastair Stout, “wishing him all the best.”
Even though Leung said she wasn’t planning on following suit, in the interview, she ended up giving her own best advice based on her experience. She’s wishing the new cast can “have fun” and shut out all the “noise” of the experience. As she also shared:
We already give ourselves so much pressure when we’re young, and we’re that age and we’re trying to figure out who we are. I remember thinking, just in retrospect looking back, I was super insecure as any other 16 year old would be. And then, to be catapulted into this huge franchise, and being in the spotlight is a lot to deal with. Try to enjoy it as much as you can and just do the work.
In the Harry Potter books, Cho Chang first appears in the third book, Prisoner of Azkaban, as a Hogwarts student from the Ravenclaw house who is a talented Seeker in the game of Quidditch and Harry Potter’s crush. Since there will be more time to explore in the book-to-screen adaptation due to its being a TV series rather than movies, we’re hoping that means fleshing out supporting characters like her who didn’t get as much attention in the movies.
Recently, Katie Leung also opened up about the “overwhelming” fame of being in the Harry Potter movies after getting cast. While she was in them, she said nothing could have stopped her for the curiosity she had around what “people were saying” about her, which was in part a lot of hateful and racist comments.
Leung’s first movie was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which came out when she was 18 years old. She subsequently continued the role in Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows - Part 2. Over the years, the Scottish actress has also been in a number of plays in London, The Peripheral, Arcane and The Wheel of Time.
You can check out Katie Leung as Lady Araminta Gun in Bridgerton Season 4, with Part 1 streaming for those with a Netflix subscription starting January 29 and Part 2 dropping on February 26.
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