Alan Cumming says he told ‘Harry Potter’ producers to ‘f— off’ after they asked him to audition for Professor Gilderoy Lockhart

Alan Cumming and Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter. Jeff Spicer / BFC / Getty Images for BFC / Warner Bros.

• Alan Cumming said he was asked to audition for “Harry Potter” with Rupert Everett.

• But he said he told producers to “f — off” after finding out that Everett should be paid more.

• “I said tell them to f —” he said.

• Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

The Scottish actor Alan Cumming was almost part of the film universe of “Harry Potter”.

In a recent interview with The Telegraph, Cumming said he was asked to do a screen test for the role of Professor Gilderoy Lockhart in “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” with British actor Rupert Everett.

Before the audition, however, Cumming said he discovered a salary gap between himself and Everett. In response, he said, “I didn’t refuse. I told them to f — out.”

“They wanted me and Rupert Everett to take a screen test and they said they couldn’t pay me more than a certain amount, they just ran out of money,” he said. “And I had the same agent as Rupert, who of course would pay more. Obvious lying, stupid lying to f — go right away. “

The “The Good Wife” actor went on to say that he thought Everett would be sure to get the role when he got out and was surprised when it finally fell to Kenneth Branagh.

“They made [Rupert Everett] Screen test, and I remember he brought his own wig. And then they gave it to Kenneth Branagh, came out of the shadows. “

Kenneth Branagh as Professor Gilderoy Lockhart. Warner bros.

It was previously reported that Hugh Grant was initially offered the role of Gilderoy Lockhart, which he accepted. However, Grant later had to decline the offer due to a scheduling conflict. Grant’s agent said at the time: “Unfortunately, Hugh had to decline the role because he committed to direct a film with Sandra Bullock next February.”

The story goes on

Working with Sandra Bullock was in fact the 2002 Two Weeks Notice.

The Guardian previously reported that Grant had already started preparing for the role of “Harry Potter” by dying his hair blonde when he was forced to retire.

Elsewhere, during his interview with The Telegraph, Cumming defended his current HBO Max animation show “The Prince”. The controversial black comedy is a satire of the British royal family about the 8-year-old Prince George.

Cumming, who speaks to Prince George Butler, said the show isn’t “as mean as people think”.

When asked if he thought the royal family would find the show amusing, he said, “If you like satire, you could … It’s actually pretty affectionate – my character with George is a really nice relationship.”

In a review, Insider’s Anneta Konstantinides said the comedy was “just not funny, not even a bit. And her jokes about the royal family feel expected and unoriginal.”

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