Harry Potter actor Gary Oldman has clarified why he called his performance as Sirius Black "mediocre", saying he was being "hypercritical" of himself and not the films overall.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Oldman made clear he's not "looking at the movie and saying it’s a terrible film or [he's] terrible", but he wished he'd performed with more knowledge of the character. Oldman said in December 2023 said that he thinks he'd play the character differently if he was given access to all of the books instead of just The Prisoner of Azkaban, the third novel and film where his character is introduced.
"Not to disparage anyone out there who are fans of the Harry Potter films and the character who I think is much beloved," Oldman said of the comment. "What I meant by that is, I think as any artist, actor, painter, you are always hypercritical of your own work. If you’re not and you’re satisfied with what you’re doing, that would be death to me. If I had watched a performance of myself and thought, ‘My god, I’m fantastic in this,’ that would be a sad day. My best work is next year.
"What I meant by the Harry Potter remark is that there was such secrecy that was shrouded around the novels, they were under lock and key. If I had read the five books and I had seen the arcs of the character, I may have approached it differently. I may have painted in a different color.
"When I started Harry Potter, all I had was [The Prisoner of Azakban] and the representation of that man – one book in the library of Sirius Black. It’s not me looking at the movie and saying it’s a terrible film or I’m terrible, I just wish it had been under different circumstances. Not to be rude to any of the people out there who like that film."
That's not to say Oldman was unhappy with his Harry Potter experience, after also starring in the fourth, fifth, and eighth entries, as he's previously said "thank God for Harry Potter" and credited it as a franchise that "saved" him.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.
