Tim Roth Turned Down Harry Potter Snape Role After Fearing 'That'll Be It' For His Career

Tim Roth has opened up about almost playing Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films. 

As part of a new interview with VT, the Reservoir Dogs actor sat down with co-star Rebecca Ferguson to promote the new Peaky Blinders film, when the topic of conversation somehow turned to Harry Potter.

Spurred on by Rebecca, Tim reluctantly admitted: “I was almost in it.”

“They asked me to be in it,” he elaborated, before explaining why he ultimately chose not to pursue the role. “I initially said yes and then I thought ‘No, I’ll just [always] be Snape, that’ll be it’.”

Obviously, that role very famously went to Alan Rickman who played the creepy-but-complex Hogwarts professor in all eight of the Harry Potter films between 2001 and 2011, becoming synonymous with Snape for many generations.

It was previously reported that Tim had auditioned to play Snape, but ended up choosing to star in The Planet Of The Apes instead – which was filming at the same time – after deeming it too much to appear in both. 

Alan was on author JK Rowling’s original “wishlist of actors” given to the film’s producers from the off, along with Robbie Coltrane, Richard Harris and Maggie Smith, who went on to play Hagrid, Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, respectively.

Meanwhile Tim isn’t the only member of the Peaky Blinders cast to talk Harry Potter, with Cillian Murphy recently shutting down rumours that he’s set to appear as Voldemort in the upcoming TV series. 

The controversial new adaptation has already signed up a string of stars for its cast including John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Nick Frost as Hagrid and Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, while Snape is set to be portrayed by I May Destroy You actor Paapa Essiedu.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is currently in select cinemas, ahead of its release on Netflix later this month.