Matthew Lewis has revealed that Harry Potter fans will be surprised at his next TV role.
In his first part since the Harry Potter films ended, the British actor – best known for playing Neville Longbottom in the wizarding series – will portray a druggie called Jamie in The Syndicate, a five-part BBC TV series written by Kay Mellor.
“Jamie is a drug-taking, mouthy scallywag from a council estate in Leeds and Neville is a shy, reserved boy wizard who’s afraid of his own shadow. On the surface they are world’s apart. However, when you scratch below that surface they have similarities,” he said.
Matthew – who is filming his first post-Potter big-screen role in Wasteland alongside Timothy Spall and Luke Treadaway – said he didn’t actively seek to play a bad boy.
“I connected with the character of Jamie instantly and wanted to play him from the moment I read the script. The fact that he was a ‘bad lad’ didn’t really factor in my decision making. I just knew I wanted to tell Jamie’s story and thankfully Kay granted me that opportunity,” the 22-year-old said.
“A lot of people will dislike him and they will find him on the surface to be a pretty disagreeable bloke. He’s been through a lot but I’m not asking people to justify his behaviour, I just hope they understand it on a human level.
“That for me is the challenge, and that is what drew me to him. I’m really passionate about this guy and this story.”
:: The Syndicate is set to air on BBC One in late March.