But whether you're a casual 'Potter' fan or bona fide aficionado, everyone can use a refresher. It's been a long break since 'Order of the Phoenix,' after all. Catch up on the main players in the sixth adventure, 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince,' then tell us who's your fave.
Harry Potter' Character Guide
Harry Potter
Played by: Daniel Radcliffe
The wunderkind wizard earned the nickname the Boy Who Lived when Lord Voldemort failed to kill him along with his parents. But despite his near-mythic status and the burden of his destiny -- it's prophesied that he will kill Voldemort, or vice versa -- Potter tries to keep it on the real. In his spare time he plays Quidditch, dates his best friend's younger sister, takes private lessons from Headmaster Dumbledore and generally tries to be the most grounded hero-martyr ever.
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Ron Weasley
Played by: Rupert Grint
Ron once suffered so many wizarding mishaps, we used to think of him as "poor little Ron." But the sixth of seven Weasley kids more than makes up for his (formerly) busted wand and mediocre talents with his unwavering loyalty and bravery in the face of battle. In 'Half-Blood Prince,' Ron actually gets some semblance of a social life, playing on the Quidditch team, dating Lavender Brown and even making Hermione jealous. Oh, Ron!
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Hermione Granger
Played by: Emma Watson
Along with Ron, Hermione is the second in Harry's inner circle of friends. She and Ron are his closest confidantes, and Hermione's exceptional spell-casting and potion-mixing skills have helped the three investigate the mysteries that Harry is meant to solve. She has a muggle parent, which means to some wizard elitists she's just a mudblood -- an aspersion that makes her all the more sensitive to the downtrodden and oppressed in the wizard world.
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Albus Dumbledore
Played by: Michael Gambon
The headmaster of Hogwarts and founder of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore is also mentor to Harry. Throughout the series, it is he who ever so gradually nudges Harry towards his Voldemort-defeating destiny. Though temporarily removed as Hogwarts headmaster in 'Phoenix,' Dumbledore returns to his rightful place in 'Prince,' in which he takes Harry on a trip down Voldemort memory lane and guides him on a fateful quest to find the Horcrux that contains the Dark Lord's soul.
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Severus Snape
Played by: Alan Rickman
Is Snape good, or is he evil? On the one hand, the longtime Potions professor (who finally gets to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts in 'Half-Blood Prince') hates Harry and makes his life miserable; on the other, he saves Harry's life. He also works for both Dumbledore and Voldemort -- is he a double agent? a triple agent? -- and though his actions in 'Prince' seem to tip him toward the "probably reeeaaally evil" side of the scale, the mystery of it all continues to make Snape one of the most intriguing characters in the 'Potter' canon.
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Draco Malfoy
Played by: Tom Felton
After initially attempting to befriend Harry in 'Sorcerer's Stone,' the bleached-blonde, Slytherin-based Malfoy becomes Harry's most malevolent rival at Hogwarts, constantly taunting him and even trying to get him expelled. In 'Half-Blood Prince,' he's more important than ever before, with his secret mission on behalf of the Death Eaters -- and his hand in a tragic demise -- taking center stage. He's also got a new girlfriend, Pansy Parkinson. Somebody likes bad boys.
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Horace Slughorn
Played by: Jim Broadbent
With every new 'Potter' movie comes a shiny new addition to the Hogwarts staff. In 'Half-Blood Prince' it's Slughorn, recruited by Dumbledore to take the post of Potions teacher. Slughorn, the retired former Head of Slytherin, is lured back to school in part by the intriguing prospect of teaching Hogwarts' most famous student: It's Slughorn who lends Harry a Potions textbook with scribbled notes describing far more potent concoctions -- a book once owned by the titular 'Prince.'
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Ginny Weasley
Played by: Bonnie Wright
The youngest of the Weasleys, and the only girl, little Ginny -- like all the Weasleys -- is bright, vivacious ... and a redhead. All along Ginny's had a crush on Harry, it's just taken Harry a little longer to figure out that he's got a thing for Ginny too. As she matures, she plays a bigger role in the battle to defeat Voldemort ... and in Harry's life as well.
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Rubeus Hagrid
Played by: Robbie Coltrane
Half-giant, half-wizard Hagrid once studied at Hogwarts, but was expelled after Tom Riddle (the wizard who became Voldemort) framed him. Dumbledore still trusts Hagrid implicitly though, giving him far greater responsibilities than a gamekeeper and "Keeper of Keys and Grounds" might usually warrant -- he even makes Hagrid a proud professor of Care of Magical Creatures. The gentle half-giant has watched over Harry since the young wizard was a baby, and remains the truest friend on campus that Harry, Hermione and Ron could ever want.
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Lord Voldemort
Played by: Ralph Fiennes
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named (whoops), also known as the Dark Lord, is the bane of Harry's existence -- and of all good wizards' as well. So evil he's barely got a nose, it was You-Know-Who who left that famous scar on Harry's forehead, and the series builds up to a decisive battle between the two. In 'Half-Blood Prince,' the soul-splitting baddie targets members of the Order of the Phoenix, and gets a little back story, which brings us to...
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Reader Comments (42)
Cookimonstress at 9:18PM on Jul 9th 2009
Ron Weasley is da shiz! Love him!
jizade14 at 11:30AM on Jul 10th 2009
Just as a correction to the information on Hermione: BOTH of her parents are muggles, not just one.
Moviefoners at 4:34PM on Jul 14th 2009
We've made the fix, thanks for pointing that out!
Janet at 8:38PM on Jul 10th 2009
Yes, both of Hermione's parents are muggle. My favorites are Harry, Hedwig, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Lucius, Narcissa, Ginny, Luna, Remus, Sirius, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Fluer, Molly Weasley, Arthur Weasley, Charlie Weasley, Bill Weasley, Fred and George Weasley, and Olivander! They are my favorite characters in the stories!
mumu21d at 12:15PM on Jul 15th 2009
you spelled "Fleur" wrong.
Jim at 1:04AM on Jul 12th 2009
Luna is not a wizard she is a witch
Jonathan Leonardi at 4:07PM on Jul 12th 2009
My favorite harry potter person is Draco Malfoy and herminone and Harry Potter and Lord Voldmort.
Jonathan Leonardi at 4:13PM on Jul 12th 2009
My favorite harry potter people are Draco Malfoy,Herminone,Harry Potter,Lord Voldmort,Ron,Ginny, Fred and Geroge, and it would be nice if they bring back harry's godfather because he was the best and it was sad when he got killed at the end of the 5 movie and if I was harry I would have killed her at the end of the 5 movie I don't understand why he did not kill her just saying.
Cyn at 2:16AM on Jul 15th 2009
He didn't kill her because Lord Voldie wanted him to. Harry thought it would make them more alike, as if they arent already.
P.S. I just LOVE Severus
adubbskthx at 10:55AM on Jul 15th 2009
you haven't read the books obviously.
Carolina f. at 8:07PM on Jul 15th 2009
my favorite characters are Drao Malfoy,Hermione,Harry,Ron,and Albus Dumboldore.I also like Sirius and Proffesor McGonaglle.
Carolina f. at 8:06PM on Jul 15th 2009
Harry didn't kill the girl that killed Sirius because he didn't mean the KILLING CURSE.And unless you didn't know that you definetly didn't read the book well.My favorite people are Draco Malfoy,Hermione,Harry,Ron,and Albus Dumboldore.it would be great if Sirius was still alive.
nik at 12:04PM on Jul 14th 2009
My fav characters are fred george and ron weasley. and draco malfoy...fred and george are just so funny and draco reminds of like a villian vampire thing and to me that pretty hott and u have to love ron way to cute!
shahzeb at 11:28PM on Jul 14th 2009
i love herminone very much
shippo at 2:21AM on Jul 14th 2009
he probably didn't kill her because voldemort told him 2 maybe not but who knows
afterall i perform magic every day not just illusions rain spells
and other stuff like healing spells
shippo at 2:22AM on Jul 14th 2009
probably because
Richard Muller at 9:33AM on Jul 14th 2009
An excellent synopsis of all the main characters! The series seems to be reacting more and more to the tone of the books, which is a good thing. Looking forward to "Deathly Hallows", it may at first look like a bit of commercialism to have a two-part finale, but the complexity of the stories makes it inevitable that to truly understand the whole of Harry Potter, an expanded telling of the works is in order.
So far, very well done!
lance andre d. maderal at 9:02PM on Jul 25th 2009
Well me too,my favorite characters:Harry Potter,Hermione,Ronald Weasley,Ginny Weasley,professor Dumbledore
Tim at 4:21PM on Jul 14th 2009
There are some errors in the above captions. First is that Hermione has two Muggle parents. Second is that this is Narccisa Malfoy's second apperance, can you guess the first?
ilikecheesegirl at 2:06PM on Jul 15th 2009
Serious(Harry's Godfather) isn't coming back.(No matter how much we wish he would)
The books have been written and the movies aren't going to change it. The ending is the ending.