8 Actor Recasts That Completely Changed Everything

3. Dumbledore - Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban

While the recasting of Dumbledore in the Harry Potter franchise was due to necessity (original actor Richard Harris tragically passed away due to Hodgkin's lymphoma) it was a shift that completely changed the character, with Michael Gambon chose to put his own spin on the character, unconcerned with trying to beat or match Harris' previous performance.

Harris' portrayal of Dumbledore was soft-spoken and whimsical, creating a grandfather-esque figure who ushers Harry and his friends into a new, magical world. Gambon's Dumbledore, on the other hand, was much quicker to anger, and at times sported twinges of Gambon's Irish accent. It's difficult to imagine Gambon in the lighter, more childish world of the first two movies, but it's equally difficult to imagine Harris in the darker, more brooding world that follows.

How Harris might have handled the heavier acting required by Dumbledore's actor in the later films we'll sadly never know.