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TheHarry Pottermovies made many big change from J.K. Rowling ’s novels , include the age ofLily and James Potter . In the record book , Lily and James are only 21 years one-time when they died , which is confirmed in the film by the date on their tombstone shown inHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I. However , Lily is trifle by Geraldine Somerville , who was 34 when the movies started and 44 when the movies terminate , and Adrian Rawlins , who played James , was even older , 43 , when the movies started and 53 when they end .
Harry ’s ( Daniel Radcliffe ) bushed parent look a few time throughout the eight - filmHarry Potterfranchise , most notably when they visit Harry before he snuff it to die inHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II , forebode forth with the resurrection I. F. Stone . Originally classmates of other important role like Severus Snape , Sirius Black , Remus Lupin , and Peter Pettigrew at Hogwarts , James was killed outright by Voldemort , and Lily sacrificed herself to protect the baby Harry before the beginning of the franchise ’s main action .
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Casting James and Lily as elderly doer in theHarry Pottermovies likely fit better with the other actors cast in adult roles and made sense when they actually appear as Harry ’s parents . Of all the actors cast in theHarry Potterseries , Snape is arguably the most iconic . hurl Alan Rickman , pick specifically by JK Rowling , had ripple effects across the eternal rest of the adult cast in the movie . He was 55 when the movies take up , while Snape in the Quran is 31 at the offset of Harry ’s first year . While some of that difference could be handwaved – he ’s living the heavy life of being Dumbledore ’s double agent with Voldemort , after all – the other histrion cast had to be credible as Snape ’s contemporaries . hurl Gary Oldman ( 43 at the start of the picture ) , David Thewlis ( 38 ) , and Timothy Spall ( 44 ) asSirius Black , Remus Lupin , and Peter Pettigrewmakes smell out through this lens of the eye .
The other reason Lily and James are older is that they have to look like Harry ’s parents . They first appear to Harry in the Mirror of Erised inHarry Potter and the Sorcerer ’s Stone , when he ’s 11 year sometime . Casting player in their early 20s would wait unknown in that role , endure next to their 11 - year old son , so older player were cast . Since fans did n’t even have James and Lily ’s ages corroborate at that clip until the final leger was released 6 years afterwards , there was no reasonableness not to cast older actors .
James and Lily ’s different eld are never explicitly know in theHarry Pottermovies- their gravestone still read them dying at 21 - and unlike other changes , this did n’t eviscerate as much attention from the fans , as it worked out all for the best . Making them older looks right and serve make other casting , especially Alan Rickman , make sense where it otherwise might not have .
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