Tom Felton hasn't been able to ride his Nimbus 2001 to the top of the Hollywood ladder just
yet.
Let's take a look at some of the reasons Hollywood won't cast the Harry Potter star anymore.
Conflicted feelings
Starring in an eight-film mega-movie franchise might seem like the opportunity of a lifetime
for any actor, but Felton didn't cherish the experience of being an overnight success story.
Before the final film hit theaters, the actor revealed that he resented the series for depriving
him of his childhood.
He told The Daily Mail that he looked forward to the freedom of not starring in the films
anymore, because he didn't want fame.
He explained,
"To me, fame is not a positive thing.
The idea of being famous is a lot better than the reality.
It's fantastic when you go to premieres and people cheer you, but it's not real."
Considering most of those fans who were cheering him on at those very premieres were the ones
he'd need to see his next movies, those words may have come back to bite him.
A career left turn
Whereas his fellow cast mates went on to pursue other acting opportunities, Felton's first
big post-Potter move was to rap, yes, rap.
In 2011, he revealed that he planned to change his image and that he had scored a recording
deal with an independent label to produce hip-hop music.
He told The Sun,
"I was thinking of doing some N-Dubz-style stuff.
I am looking to get into the grime rap UK scene."
Although that public persona overhaul never seemed to pan out, some of his music has made
way to the public sphere.
However, his music has hardly been successful enough to qualify as a new career path.
Regaining confidence
Another surprising downside to the safety of a long-lived role is that the series' end
can feel a little like being thrown into the ocean without a life vest.
The actor has admitted that returning to the regular practice of auditioning for parts
to sustain a lifestyle was very difficult for him to adjust to.
"Um I don't really see myself as a Harry Potter star, I only feel like that when I sit here
and get questions such as that."
"Really?"
"Ya!"
The disappointment of being denied roles was so disorienting for him that he considered
walking away from the business altogether.
He told The Daily Mail in 2011,
"I thought, 'I can't do this.'
They are cut-throat in America.
Before you've even started, someone's playing on the BlackBerry.
You're reading your lines, physically convulsing, and they just say 'Thank you.'
That means, 'Get lost.'
Missing box office magic
Although the Harry Potter series was a box office phenomenon, and Rise of the Planet
of the Apes, which Felton appeared in, did well enough to justify its own series of sequels,
he still hasn't proven himself to be a bankable actor.
His small-time thriller The Apparition, for example, failed to even regain its financiers'
investment, according to Box Office Mojo.
Since then, he's yet to appear in a film that made any kind of impression at the ticket
booth.
Felton's not the only one of the Harry Potter alums who has struggled to convince muggles
to see his movies, but being associated with so many bombs likely isn't going to make his
agent's job any easier.
Making peace with Potter
When Felton finished his Harry Potter duties, he seemed to regard it as a burden he was
glad to be rid of.
According to The Daily Mail, he talked openly about how he wasn't great friends with his
co-stars and how much his real-life friends hated the movies.
Perhaps Hollywood has since humbled him a bit, because his tune has changed significantly
in recent years.
He even told BuzzFeed that he hopes any eventual remake of the series might feature him in
it, whether it's as his character's father or a, quote "wizarding extra in the background."
He told The Telegraph that by 2016, he was starting to, quote, "miss [Draco] greatly."
Perhaps all that time spent away from the franchise has finally allowed him to appreciate
how rare it was for him to nab such a lucrative role.
"Perhaps it's true."
Started streaming
Felton may have had some trouble establishing a new foothold in the film industry, but like
many other stars, he's been able to turn to a streaming series to start fresh.
He nabbed a leading role in the YouTube Original sci-fi series Origin, which centers around
would-be intergalactic colonists whose journey to a new planet goes way off course.
Following the series' trailer debut at 2018's San Diego Comic-Con, Felton was asked about
the new endeavor, and he was almost immediately pegged as the probable big bad of the show,
thanks to his screen history.
He joked in response,
"Me?
Why would you say that?"
Felton's willingness to adapt to a changing cinematic world and explore alternative mediums
for his art may be the start of a career revival.