The fifth film in the “Harry Potter” saga is broadcast on TF1 this Tuesday, November 28, 2023 at 9:10 p.m. Did you know that the main actor had to go to the psychologist before starting filming?
After a sporting break, viewers can resume their marathon Harry Potter this evening on TF1. The first channel broadcasts the fifth episode of the magical franchise this Tuesday, November 28 from 9:10 p.m. Titled Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, it is also one of the darkest films in the saga.
In this fifth film, the students of Hogwarts are once again pushed to their limits: everyone continues to ignore the return of Voldemort despite the death of Cedric Diggory, following a disinformation campaign by the Ministry of Magic which revolts Harry who witnessed the murder.
And things are not going to get better when a new director is appointed to the magic school, Dolores Umbridge. The latter intends to restore order in the wizarding school with oppressive and strict methods. At his wit’s end, Harry Potter decides to organize a rebellion at school.
A turning point for Daniel Radcliffe
This dark turning point in the saga was felt by the actors, who had to change their acting and their way of working to adopt this radical change. This is particularly the case of the interpreter of the hero with the scar, Daniel Radcliffe. In this fifth film, Harry Potter is in fact still traumatized by the death of Cédric Diggory (Robert Pattinson), killed by Peter Pettigrew in the previous episode.
The British actor, who has played the bespectacled wizard since he was 11, therefore took his task with the greatest seriousness. Before filming, Daniel Radcliffe sought to learn about the different stages of grief. For this, he also went several times to a specialized psychologist to understand the emotional state his character must have been in at this pivotal moment in his life.
The best performance of the saga
Because the challenge was twofold: in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the title role suffers from having witnessed the death of his comrade first, in the fourth film. But he also feels guilty for having survived the encounter with Voldemort and Peter Petigrew, when his friend was murdered. The actor thus learned that his character suffered from what is called, in psychology, “survivor syndrome”.
Daniel Radcliffe also spoke on this subject in the biography devoted to him, written by Terri Dougherty and published in 2009. The British actor, now aged 34, explained that it had been “a real challenge ” to interpret “loneliness, anger and pain that Harry Potter feels” at this moment in the story.
In 2014, however, Daniel Radcliffe felt that the game had been worth it: he told the Daily Mail Online that he had his best performance of the saga.