12 Worst Casting Decisions In Harry Potter Movies
11. Rhys Ifans As Xenophilius Lovegood
Rhys Ifans is legitimately a great actor and one of Britain's greatest exports, but underneath a forced accent and a matted wig, he was wasted in the Potterverse. His role as the misguided Xenophilous Lovegood is a missed trick from the seventh film. Whereas Evanna Lynch excelled as his daughter Luna, Mr. Lovegood was shown up as a poor imitation of the source material.
The Lovegood of the books is shown as being as equally wacky and off-kilter as his daughter, but the final films were so mired in their own darkness, any of Ifans' comedy edge was wiped out.
He can also play a superb villain, but the lack of screen time or introduction of the character made Lovegood's scenes little more than mid-film exposition. Why hire a well-known comedy actor to stick him with such a stiff script? Just another name on the HP payroll.