10 Behind The Scenes Reasons For Harry Potter Character Traits
Barty Crouch's creepy tongue flick was improvised by David Tennant out of nowhere.
The Harry Potter franchise is obviously one of the most successful media empires in history, and Warner Bros.' movie adaptations remain some of the most well-received of any beloved book series.
It's clear that so much thought went into every aspect of the films' production, whether we as fans appreciated it or not. This is true from the script to the production design, and the nuances of the actors' performances.
Even the most minor aspects of a character's presentation are hugely important in the grand scheme of things, and were laboured over by directors, actors, and crafts personnel to deliver a more compelling end product.
And so, you're probably aware of these 10 Harry Potter character traits - from left-field wardrobe choices to the way they carry themselves on-screen, to that damn weird way they waggle their tongue - but you likely don't know how these flourishes came to be.
Some were happy accidents, others were the result of committed effort from the cast and crew, and others were informed by nothing more than gut instinct for what the character should be doing...
10. Voldemort's Weird Wand-Holding
Over the years, Potter fans have routinely pointed out that Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) holds his wand in a rather strange way quite unlike anybody else in the entire series.
Rather than holding it firmly and seemingly with purpose, it almost seems to be hanging off his hand most of the time, as though he could drop it at any moment.
This was actually a flourish cooked up by Ralph Fiennes himself, who wanted to be able to slink around without the wand falling out of his hand.
And so, Fiennes collaborated with the production team to design a unique hooked wand that would remain attached to his hand even as he slithered about.
In a 2019 interview with GQ, Fiennes said:
"[J.K. Rowling] describes [Voldemort's] voice in a couple of places at least, which was a good indicator of where to go and the snake-like idea that J.K. Rowling gives him as someone, but that he himself has snake-like elements to his movement, silky-smooth and silent...
With Stuart Craig, who's the production designer, and his team, we discussed what the wand would be, It has a hook on it, so I can hold my hand, and then the end can hook around this finger. I remember it should feel like an extension of my hand... Like I almost have the hand open... you'd think it would fall off the hand. But I just enjoyed that it could be light in the hand."