Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) taunts Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2010), Warner Bros. Pictures
Among the many, many villains to have been depicted on the silver screen, the Harry Potter franchise’s Lord Voldemort remains easily one of the scariest – and if the upcoming HBO series felt like taking a risk, it could make a major impression by taking the Dark Lord’s unsettling physical appearance to the next level.
Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) reveals his plan is close to fruition in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2010), Warner Bros. Pictures
In J.K. Rowling’s original books, Voldemort’s appearance is heavily altered and left looking less-than-human as a result of his experiments with dark magic, in particular the creation of Horcruxes, from a young age.

As read in The Goblet of Fire, the villain is described as a very thin man with a skeletal appearance who breathes through two very small nostril slits and whose thin skin sticks to his protruding bones – although that last detail, as well as his skull-like face, red-shot eyes, and cat-like pupils, were left out of his silver screen depiction.
Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) assembles his forces for the Battle of Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2010), Warner Bros. Pictures
However, while the film’s eventual portrayal of Voldemort was far less terrifying and controversial, Rowling and the film’s production team actually wanted the villain to look far more accurate to his depiction in the book.

As shared to Twitter by fan-account Harry Potter Universe, during pre-production, a mold of Voldemort’s far-more-reptilian was actually created for the film, as intended for use when the villain was ‘sharing a head’ Quirrell.

Surprisingly, many fans responded to this post by expressing how much they would have preferred to see this version over the mask-like design that was eventually adopted, with one fan even observing, “If all that was left of Voldy at that point in the story was his essence (after having so much of his soul purposefully splintered off), it makes some sense that he’d look less than human/more monstrous.”
Harry Potter Universe @HPotterUniverse via Twitter
At current, it’s unknown why, exactly, WB chose to err away from Voldemort’s original design (though some have speculated that it was done in order to avoid scaring the franchise’s intended demographic of younger children).

However, in light of the twin facts that this appearance was fully considered well into the original film series’ production and that, when announcing the upcoming HBO project in April 2023, HBO CEO Casey Bloys promised that the upcoming TV series would be a faithful adaptation of the books, there exists a good chance that this philosophy will extend to the small screen appearances of the characters and result in a genuinely horrifying take on He Who Shall Not Be Named.

While there has yet to be any official confirmation from HBO regarding the design’s adoption, the idea of its return could make for an interesting to transform the villain in the show and separate it from its cinematic predecessors (However, hilariously enough, if he were to adopt these new features, he would like have to do more ‘yapping’ than straight and clear ‘talking’. Voldemort’s storyline portrays an inherently evil character, so the scarier he looks on the screens, the stronger the message he sends.

Notably, given that all seven Harry Potter books will be covered in the show and thus providing a deeper look into the villain’s sinister motives (as detailed in the books but left out of the films), the use of Voldemort’s more monstrous form would go far in reinforcing his evil narrative.

Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) strikes out at Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2010), Warner Bros. Pictures
At current, it’s still unclear who exactly will play The Dark Lord.

In September 2024, HBO issued an official casting call for child actors between the ages of 9-11 to play Harry, Hermoine, and Ron, though as of writing, no word has been made of any adult auditions.

However, at current, it’s at least known that his film actor, Ralph Fiennes, is not currently looking to reprise the role.

Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) meets his end in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2010), Warner Bros. Pictures
Regardless, the overwhelming support for Voldemort’s ‘reptile’ design speaks volumes as to what direction fans are hoping the series will take when adopting the story of the boy wizard.

As commented by another Twitter user, “They should’ve went with the original design of Voldemort. The design being terrifying and potentially traumatizing to kids would’ve been even more of a reason not to speak of him.”