Tom Felton recently made his glorious Broadway debut in the highly anticipated Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at New York’s Lyric Theatre, and boy, was it emotional. He returned as Draco Malfoy in the live-action adaptation of the said sequel, complete with his brilliant blonde wig – the same way he did for all eight of the original Harry Potter films.
In a clip shared by @WW_Direct on X, the star was seen looking pretty emotional as he bowed to the audience after completing his first performance for The Cursed Child in his return as Draco. And the audience’s reaction was nothing short of electrifying, either, as the entire theatre erupted with the sounds of thunderous cheers and applause upon his entrance.
An emotional Tom Felton bows to the audience after he completed his first performance for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in his return as Draco Malfoy!
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Well, it must have felt pretty momentous for Felton, coming to a full circle, as he once again took on the character of Draco after last playing him in 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, so his reaction is only understandable. If you wish to witness more such feats from the star as Draco, then rejoice, for you can catch Felton as Malfoy until May 10, 2026!
Tom Felton Feels “Lucky” to Reprise His Role as Draco Malfoy
While his latest reaction following his debut pretty much sums up how Tom Felton must be feeling to get to step back into the shoes of Draco Malfoy once again, the actor echoed similar thoughts back when the rehearsals began for the Broadway performance. At the time, he talked about how “lucky” he felt to be there, saying (via Harry Potter),
It’s still happening. I mean, look! Are you kidding me?! I keep waiting to wake up. But no, I genuinely pinched myself a dozen times yesterday, like… How? How did I get so lucky?
He also talked about how “it’s a bit of a ride” to step back into the magical Wizarding World after decades of leaving it behind, candidly confessing,
I was, yesterday, walking home – especially when you’re in the theatre, you don’t see the city of New York outside. You’re in your own magical world here, and suddenly you walk out to the bus in the streets or Times Square, and it’s umm… Yeah, it’s a bit of a ride.
Oh, and not to mention, Felton also revealed that it was around 25 years ago, from the days the rehearsals for this play began, that he did his first table read for the first film in Daniel Radcliffe’s original film series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. He said at the beginning of the rehearsals for the play:
Well, rehearsals have begun. It feels really weird, holding a wand again – [Chuckles] in a good way. Yes, our rehearsals have started. We had an amazing table read yesterday, which is incredible. And, weirdly enough, actually it was 25 years ago to the day almost that I did my first table read for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, for the first film. So, quite apt!
Plus, what makes it even more intriguing is the fact that Felton, now, is the exact age that his Wizarding World character is in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Can we please call it fate, already?!
Tom Felton Talked About How He Prepared to Return as Draco
Apart from expressing how lucky he felt to return to don Draco Malfoy’s robes once again, Tom Felton also opened up about how he prepared to return as his iconic character. He shared that he had to learn how to hold the wand and cast spells with his left hand as well, since stage plays can’t have the actors’ backs to the audience.
Talking about how it felt to prepare for the character, Felton said,
There’s lots of things to learn! It’s old shoes but very much in a new world. Today, I mean, to be completely honest, I spent the morning trying to learn how to cast spells with my left hand with the wand. Tom’s never done that before, so I had to remind him three or four times a day that, a) left hand is for the wand, and b) not to put your entire back to the audience. Apparently, the audience needs to see. So yeah. Early days! [Laughs]
Well, if it felt like stepping into a new world for him, Felton certainly left no stone unturned in his Broadway performance for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, considering how the audience’s reaction to his return was nothing short of pure bliss. Then again, he was born to be Draco, so could anything less be expected of him?!
The one-part version of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Lyric Theatre on Broadway is scheduled to run at least through May 10, 2026.
