Ian McKellen (known as Gandalf) could have played Dumbledore, but he turned it down because of one comment. MeinMMO tells you what’s behind it.
Why did he refuse? In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Michael Gambon took over the role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore after the original actor Richard Harris died in 2002. But Ian McKellen, known for his role as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings, was actually considered as the successor to the legendary wizard. However, he turned it down, and the reason for this is a comment made by Richard Harris.
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Ian McKellen didn’t want to play Dumbledore
After the death of Richard Harris, the search for a new Dumbledore was urgent. Harris had played the headmaster in the first two films, and his successor had big shoes to fill.
What reasons does McKellen give? In a BBC interview, McKellen explained that he had been asked if he would be interested in playing a role in Harry Potter. It was not made clear which role it would be. For him and probably for everyone else, it was clear that it had to be Dumbledore. I couldn’t take the part from an actor who I knew wouldn’t have approved of me, explained McKellen.
Richard Harris had described McKellen’s acting skills, as well as those of his colleagues Derek Jacobi and Kenneth Branagh, as technically brilliant but passionless. Perhaps out of pride or respect, he did not want to play Dumbledore.
Here you can see the BBC interview on YouTube:
McKellen describes Richard Harris’ comment in the BBC interview as nonsense. He decided not to take on the role, even though it had not yet been explicitly offered to him. But it was a reasonable assumption – as mentioned above – that the request was for the role of Dumbledore.
Is there more to it? According to Filmstarts, he also said that he had difficulty doing justice to a single legend. And with Dumbledore, that would have been two legendary roles – which would have been too much for him. But the main reason was Richard Harris’s comment.
In fact, even other actors were considered for the role of Dumbledore, including icons such as Christopher Lee, Harry Robinson and Sean Connery.
Finally, Michael Gambon played the role of Dumbledore in the remaining Harry Potter films and won the hearts of many fans for his interpretation of the headmaster of Hogwarts. Ian McKellen joked in the interview that he sometimes confused Gambon with himself when he saw posters and pictures from the films. There is no doubt that all three actors are highly valued for their portrayals of the most legendary wizards in film history. But did you know that? Ian McKellen almost didn’t become Gandalf, but James Bond.