Daniel Radcliffe Admits Fearing A Harry Potter Co-Star ‘Hated’ Him: ‘I Was Terrified By Him’

Daniel Radcliffe has opened up about his working relationship with Alan Rickman, sharing that he was once “terrified” of his former Harry Potter co-star.

The two began working together in the first Harry Potter film, in which Daniel made his debut as a child actor playing the title character, while Alan portrayed Potions professor Severus Snape.

In a new interview with the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Daniel admitted to being initially “so intimidated” by the late Die Hard actor when they first began working together.

“How can you not be by that voice?” he said. “Even hearing that voice, you forget quite how low it was until it echoes through you.

“I was so intimidated by him for the first three movies. I was terrified by him and was like, ‘This guy hates me’.”

Alan Rickman in 2015, a year before his death
Alan Rickman in 2015, a year before his death

David M. Benett via Getty Images

As time went on, the pair eventually became close, particularly after Alan noticed Daniel’s work ethic.

“Somewhere along the lines he saw that I really wanted to do this and work at it,” Daniel said.

“He cut short a vacation in Canada to come and see me in Equus. He saw every piece of stage work I did when he was alive. He would take me out afterwards and we would talk about it.”

Daniel added: “He was one of the first people to say like, ‘You should look at voice coaching and investigate all this stuff’.”

After being played a clip from 2016 in which Alan sang his praises, Daniel said: “I am so lucky. To hear him say that is really lovely. Thank you for showing me that.”

Daniel Radcliffe and Alan Rickman in 2011
Daniel Radcliffe and Alan Rickman in 2011

via Associated Press

In the clip in question Alan was heard saying: “As much as I was doing it for seven weeks, they were doing it for 52 weeks. This was their life from 12 to 22.

“And you would watch it from the sidelines at times and throw the odd lifeline in because there was so little time for that.”

The Love Actually actor added that he felt “huge pride” watching Daniel in the Broadway musical How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying.

“How dare he be dancing as well as the New York dancers,” he joked. “He worked at it.”

In 2022, Alan Rickman’s diaries were published, in which his changing feelings towards Harry Potter’s younger cast members were documented.

He wrote in one 2008 entry: “One minute he was 12 now he’s 19. When did that happen? And he’s sensitive, articulate and smart.”

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Tom Felton Fondly Recalls Alan Rickman Hurling F-Bomb At Him On Harry Potter Set

Tom Felton reminisced this week about a time when Alan Rickman was a complete accio-hole to him — in the most loving way possible.

The Harry Potter star, who played the entitled Draco Malfoy in the film franchise, shared a story about the late Die Hard actor in which Alan made Tom as nervous as Ron Weasley around spiders.

The incident occurred during a night shoot for a scene in 2009’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, in which Felton and a group of Death Eaters — essentially the Wizarding World equivalent of Nazis — are following Alan, aka Professor Severus Snape, through Hogwarts.

Alan was wearing a long cloak during the scene, and gave Tom a severe warning before a take.

“Eventually I was told in no uncertain terms by Alan Rickman, ‘Don’t step on my fucking cloak,’” Tom recounted in an Instagram video. (The actual expletive is bleeped out in the video.) “I sort of giggled. The Death Eaters and I looked at each other and thought, ‘Is he joking?’ It quickly became apparent: He’s definitely not joking.”

The situation got even more riddikulus, Tm said, when director David Yates asked him to “walk as close as [he] can to Alan” in the scene. Felton said the take went smoothly until they “got about halfway through the Great Hall”… and Tom stepped on Alan’s robe.

Tom said Alan “turned around and gave me a look you never, ever want to see.”

Considering that Alan’s Snape was a cold authority figure with a sharp tongue and an intimidating leer, it’s hard not to feel for Felton, who was just a kid at the time.

But Tom said in his video he understood why Alan would be upset.

“You have to bear in mind his cloak’s attached around his neck — I nearly killed the poor man!” he said.

Thankfully, in the next take Tom said “someone else” accidentally stomped on Snape’s cape.

“That kind of took the heat away from me,” Tom quipped. “But I’ll never forget those words: ‘Don’t step on my fucking cloak.’”

Alan Rickman, Tom Felton, Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Matthew Lewis attend the New York premiere of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011.
Alan Rickman, Tom Felton, Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Matthew Lewis attend the New York premiere of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011.

Stephen Lovekin via Getty Images

Felton shared the story to promote his new memoir, “Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard.” But he’s told the story before, speaking to a much smaller audience at the 2019 London Film & Comic Con.

In a Q&A with fans there, Tom expressed affection for Rickman, who died in 2016. But he admitted Alan was also the person on set he was “scared most of,” because “he stays in character pretty much the whole time.”

“I remember, there was once we were night shooting, and he’s just standing there, ominously. And eventually I plucked up the courage to say ‘Are you all right, Alan?’” Tom said. “And he just turned, ever so slowly, and just ― ‘I’ve peaked.’”

Tom said that he remembered “not laughing at the time.”

“And then I realised it later: He was a very funny man.”

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