Voldemort Has a New Helper
Friday August 4 11:23 AM ET
The actress has been cast in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix as a Death Eater.
By Dennis Michael, FilmStew.com
The cast is starting to assemble for the fifth Harry Potter picture, and Helena Bonham Carter is joining the magic. Bonham Carter is set to play Bellatrix Lestrange, a servant of the Evil Lord Voldemort, and apparently fairly unpleasant in her own right, being a Death Eater. Imelda Stanton is also joining the Hogwarts family, as Delores Umbridge, and George Harris has been announced for the role of Shaklebolt.
David Yates is taking on the task of bringing The Order of the Phoenix to the screen from Michael Goldenberg's script. The fifth go-round for the fantasy series is targeted at that increasingly popular destination, summer 2007.
Meanwhile, Harry Potter authoress J.K. Rowling made a rare appearance in New York this week, reading excerpts from her work-in-progress, the final installment of the seven-volume saga of Harry Potter. Panel participant Stephen King organized the charity reading, for Doctors Without Borders and the Haven Foundation, and author John Irving was also part of the show. In the panel discussion, she discussed writing the final Harry novel, and commented on earlier reports that two, unnamed major characters will die in the book. (King, a fan of the series, commented that he hopes Harry isn't one of them.) She also told the audience that the experience of finishing the Harry Potter saga was a wistful one, and that she would go through a mourning period before thinking about what else she'll be writing. The fact that the Harry Potter series has made her one of the wealthiest women in England will probably give her the luxury of taking her time ! to find a new subject.