MAIN Pop Culture Harry Potter Harry Potter Characters

From the Potters, the Dursleys and the Weasleys - to the more than 200 other major characters in the Harry Potter franchise - it can be difficult keeping track of the cast that makes up the epic Harry Potter story line.

Beyond the obvious spotlight on Harry, Ron and Hermione, there are other friends that surround them along with parents and teachers, heroes and villains, mysterious Harry Potter creatures, and mythical animals all vying for attention at some point in the plot.

For a handy reference, here are the top Harry Potter characters with descriptions in an A-Z list (CAUTION: PLOT SPOILERS AHEAD):

Harry Potter heroes and villains

Sirius Black - Harry's surrogate father figure and Askaban prison escapee who later gives his life to help Harry lead the fight against Lord Voldemort.
Albus Dumbldore - Wise, powerful head of Hogwarts and Harry's main mentor.
Harry Potter - Orphaned hero of the plot whose ultimate destiny lies in a climactic battle with the evil Lord Voldemort.
Hermione Granger - The main heroine who transforms from one of the brightest and most righteous characters to one of the most gritty, brave and rebellious.
Lord Voldemort - Harry's arch-enemy in the ultimate battle agsint evil, AKA Tom Riddle, "The Dark Lord", "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named".
Hagrid - Harry's friend and confidant, a lovable half-man half-giant who is Hogwart's school custodian and, later, Care of Magical Creatures teacher.

HEROES: Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter; Emma Watson as Hermione Granger;
Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley; and Michael Gambon as Professor
Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Bellatrix Lestrange - Crazily wicked minion of Lord Voldemort and one of the first female Death Eaters introduced into the story.
Neville Longbottom - Bumbling, absent-minded friend to Harry who later evolves into a major leader in Dumbledore's Army.
Luna Lovegood - Harry's illogical, loony and loveable school friend often described as the "anti-Hermione."
Remus Lupin - Hogwart's Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who teams with Sirius Black to help Harry lead the charge against Lord Voldemort.
Draco Malfoy - Son of the evil Lucius Malfoy and Harry's arch-enemy at Hogwarts.
Lucius Malfoy - Smug and sneering minion of Lord Voldemort.
"Mad-Eye" Moody - Friend of Dumbledore who comes out of retirement from fighting criminal wizards (which explains his prosthetic eye and wooden leg) to join Hogwarts in the final battle.

VILLAINS: Ralph Fiennes as Lord Voldemort; Imelda Staunton as Dolores Umbridge;
Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange; and Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy
in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Minerva McGonagall - Stern yet loveable professor and Hogwart's deputy headmistress.
Severus Snape - Potions teacher whose loyalty to Dumbledore and The Hogwarts School is in constant doubt -- until the final chapter.
Sybill Trelawney - The thickly bespectacled Professor of Divination thought to be a fraud, although she does accurately predict Harry will be the Chosen One in the final battle.
Dolores Umbridge - In the final chapters appointed the "High Inquisitor" at Hogwarts, and earning a place in children's literature as one of the most hated villains of all time.
Arthur Weasley - Husband of Molly and father of Ron Weasley.
Molly Weasley - Mother to Ron, his twin brothers Fred and George, and endearing maternal surrogate to Harry.
Fred Weasley & George Weasley - Ron's mischevious older twin siblings.
Ron Weasley - Harry's best friend and the story's major comic relief.

Elsewhere around the Web, get a handle on the names and faces associated with the world of Harry Potter at online glossaries, guides, pictures, and biographies ranging from the bravest and wisest of them to the most despicable, wicked or whiny...

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