Robin Williams
Robin Williams gestures during a panel discussion for his upcoming HBO show "Robin Williams: Weapons of Self-Destruction" at the Television Critics Association Cable summer press tour in Pasadena, California July 30, 2009. The show debuts on December 6, 2009. Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

Anerican comedian Robin Williams reached to the “Harry Potter” team before and asked if he could play the role of Hagrid. However, due to the Brits-only rule, Williams was not considered to be part of the movie.

Casting director Janet Hirshenson revealed to Huffington Post that Williams called director Chris Columbus about the said role but was rejected on account of his nationality. “He really wanted to be in the movie, but it was a British-only edict. And once [Columbus] said no to Robin, he wasn’t going to say yes to anybody else, that’s for sure. It couldn’t be.”

Back in 2001, the 63-year-old comedian expressed that there were certain parts of the “Harry Potter” movie that he really wanted to portray.

Eventually, Robbie Coltrane was cast as Hagrid in the “Harry Potter” films. He was the first choice made by JK Rowling to play the half-giant character. He appeared in all eight movie adaptations of her books.

Williams was not the only one who was rejected by the “Harry Potter” team. Eddie Redmayne recently revealed that he tried to audition for the role of Tom Riddle in 2002’s “Harry Potter And The Chamber of Secrets.” But he had the same fate as Williams and he also didn’t receive any call back. “Over the years, I always hoped I might be cast as a member of the Weasley family. I’m colour blind, but I’ve always been told there’s a tinge of red to my hair but unfortunately not.” He added that some of his friends namely Domhnall Gleeson and Rob Pattinson, got their Harry Potter moment, but I never got his.

On the other hand, Naomi Watts was also set to play the role of Narcissa, Lucius Malfoy's wife and Draco's mother. But her agency did not approve the role for her so it was Helen McRory who took the role. As for the lead role, Liam Aiken was supposed to cast as Harry Potter but was also rejected because he was not British.

Aside from being one of the best actors of all time, Williams was also known as an American filmmaker. He directed the Oscar winner in 1999’s “Bicentennial Man” and 1993’s iconic “Mrs Doubtfire.” The comedian actor died in 2014.

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