‘Harry Potter’ Actors Matthew Lewis and Tom Felton Might Be Friends in Real Life Now
There was never a scene quite like this in any of the eight Harry Potter movies, but one could imagine a character, like, say, Hagrid, grabbing Malfoy and Neville by the scruffs of their necks and growling, “Why don’t you two grow up?”
Well, Tom Felton (Malfoy) and Matthew Lewis (Neville) have done just that, literally and figuratively. The two are making nice on social media, poking good fun at their rancorous past and driving fans into fits of nostalgia, never mind that the actors are pretty far removed from the franchise by now.
What did Malfoy and Neville do in art?
Fans well remember that Malfoy and Neville were often at each other’s throats, with Malfoy often gaining the upper hand by brute force, but Neville winning the day through sheer force of will. The two didn’t often meet, since the focus was always on Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but Neville constantly surprised people by being brave and giving the lie to his mawkish personality.
One of those instances came when Neville actually tried to prevent Harry, Ron, and Hermione from putting themselves in danger in the first movie/novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Although Hermione reluctantly cast a spell on Neville to keep him at bay, Dumbledore later rewarded him by saying, “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends”
And Malfoy? Well, it was telling he was almost always referred to by his last name and rarely by his first, Draco. That’s how you know you’re a bad guy, when your first name gets lost in the shuffle. However, the days of conflict are long since past, except for the good-natured social media scuffle.
What are Tom Felton and Matthew Lewis doing in real life?
Lewis and Felton have both continued their acting careers, with Lewis starring in the British series Ripper Street, while Felton’s roles include a smarmy animal handler in Rise of the Planet of the Apes who gets the famous “damn dirty ape” originally made immortal by Charlton Heston. Still, Lewis and Felton find the time to take virtual swipes at one another.
For instance, late last year, Felton posted a photo of himself wearing Slytherin robes while standing alongside a picture of his younger self in character as Malfoy. The 32-year-old wrote: “Aging’s a bitch.” This prompted Davis to reply, “Speak for yourself lad!”
That’s very easy to say for someone who has aged into adulthood more gracefully than most.
The back and forth continued this month, according to Screen Rant, Lewis posted a picture of himself at the Harry Potter section of Universal in Orlando, and Lewis said, “There’s a storm coming,” echoing Hagrid’s line to Harry. Felton playfully replied, “I used to bully him.” Cue fan squealing.
Malfoy and Neville live to post another day
Besides their in-character squabbling, Lewis and Felton have independently led unexpected post Potter lives. Lewis has surprised many fans who had not pictured Neville Longbottom as their ideal date – so much so there’s actually a term for this. To say that someone has “Neville Longbottomed ” means that someone becomes more attractive as they enter adulthood. Lewis is amused by all this, saying he never imagined his character coining a phrase.
Some might say that Emma Watson has Neville Longbottomed herself, and this feeds into her ongoing friendship with Felton. Watson has previously admitted she had a crush on Felton, so when Felton and Watson are seen being particularly chummy on social media, fans begin to fantasize that the two must be dating. Each has denied they are dating each other, with Watson notably declaring she’s “self-partnered.” Be that as it may, it won’t be long before Felton and Lewis or Felton and Watson fuel fan’s imaginations again.
