Comics & Literature

Harry Potter: The Tragic Life Of Remus Lupin

Published

3 years ago

October 13, 2020

Things You May Not Have Known

remus lupin david thewlis image — _{Warner Bros.}

He may be a side-character in the Harry Potter saga. And his plot may do nothing more than to add yet another puzzle piece to the Harry Potter series. Yet, the story of Professor Remus Lupin is quite extraordinary on its own.

The Harry Potter books and films portray the life of Remus Lupin as a tragic affair. Though the films don’t go into quite so much depth as the books. On-screen Lupin, played by David Thewlis, first appeared in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. His backstory is shrouded in mystery for much of the film. But any super-fan will know that his tale runs much deeper. Let’s take a look at some finer details of the werewolf’s character that you may not be aware of.

Becoming a Werewolf at 4 years old

So, where did his story start? Well, he was turned by Fenrir Greyback before his fifth birthday. During Greyback’s trial Lupin’s father spoke against the werewolf community . He stated that they were “Soulless, evil, deserving nothing but death.” Furious, Greyback attacked Remus while he slept. His father saved him from death, but could not stop the curse from taking hold. He and Remus’ mother tried many treatments, but they were unsuccessful. They covered Remus’ condition, moving to a new town when suspicions started.

Werewolf Origins of His Name

J.K Rowling is renowned for using symbolic names for her characters. Remus Lupin is yet another example of this int he Harry Potter series.

In Roman mythology the name Remus describes one of the two young brothers – Remus and Romulus. Both were raised by a she-wolf after King Amulius ordered their death.

Remus’ surname “Lupin” also nods to lycanthropy. “Lupin” in Latin translates to “wolf”.

Ironically, Remus’ father Lyall also has lycanthropic tendencies. In Old Norse language “Lyall” translates to “Liulfr”, which means “wolf”.

The Tragedy of The First Wizarding War

It’s clear throughout the saga that the First Wizarding War was tragic. Harry himself lost both his parents. Lupin also lost heavily. He lost two of his beloved friends through death (Lily and James). Another through imprisonment (Sirius Black), and another through betrayal (Peter Pettigrew).

Remus despises his Patronus

The Patronus is a powerful spell in the wizarding world. It is used many times throughout the saga. Many Patronus’ are symbolic to the wizard who wields it. Harry Potter’s Patronus is a stag, like his father, James. Snape’s is a doe which symbolises his love for Lily. Dumbledore’s is a phoenix, dedicated to his beloved pet phoenix, Fawkes.

Remus’ Patronus was never revealed. Yet, in an entry on Pottermore J.K Rowling confirmed that it was a wolf. Not a werewolf. The wolf symbolises family and loyalty as well as being non-threatening. But Remus still despised the shape, as it only reminded him of his curse.

Remus and Tonks

The love story of Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks is very much bypassed in the Harry Potter films. The Order of the Phoenix gave a little insight into their relationship, but nothing more than a scene or two. It was the very last film where we saw their close affections for each other. One of the final scenes showed their bodies, their hands reaching out for one another as they died side by side.

Yet, it was the sixth book that shone a light on the pair’s romantic story, albeit one full of struggle.

Lupin was hesitant to marry Tonks due to his lower social standing and their difference in age. She witnessed Fleur Delacour’s affections towards Bill Weasley during a battle. This prompted her to act on her own feelings. Lupin rejected her affection but they married in 1997 and later had a son they named Teddy.

The Boggart Scene holds a deeper meaning

In a more light-hearted scene The Prisoner of Azkaban shows Lupin teaching his class how to defend themselves against a Boggart.

In fact, the Boggart holds a deeper meaning for Remus Lupin. It’s how his parents met. His mother, Hope, who was a muggle, mistook the Boggart for a real attack. Lyall saved Hope but did not reveal that the attacker had been a Boggart until later. The pair even had a Boggart topper for their wedding cake.

Lupin’s death for a Weasley’s life

In 2016 J.K Rowling dropped a bombshell on the Harry Potter fandom community. In a tweet marking the anniversary of The Battle of Hogwarts she apologised for Lupin’s death. With a separate tweet she then went on to confess that she hadn’t planned to kill Remus Lupin:

‘In the interests of total honesty I’d also like to confess that I didn’t decide to kill Lupin until I wrote The Order of the Phoenix.’

She continued: ‘Arthur [Weasley] lived, so Lupin had to die.’

But who killed Lupin? It wasn’t revealed in The Deathly Hallows. But the final book shines a light on the answer. It was Death Eater Antonin Dolohov who cast the final deadly spell. Tonks died at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange leaving their only son, Teddy, an orphan.

When speaking to MuggleNet. Director David Yates stated that they almost shot Lupin and Tonks’ final battle scene. But they ran out of time due to the 3-D conversion.

His legacy lived on through his son

The books also reveal more about Teddy.

The epilogue to the Deathly Hallows Pt.II film didn’t show what had become of young Ted. Other fiction filled the in-between gaps. Nymphadora’s mother, Andromeda Tonks raised the young orphan. Later, Ted attended Hogwarts and resided in Hufflepuff house. He eventually became head boy.

But in the epilogue to the final book he is spotted kissing Bill and Fleur’s daughter, Victoire, by James Potter.

An uplifting end to quite a family story.

Thanks for reading our article on the tragic life of Remus Lupin. Did we miss anything? Do you agree or disagree with our points or have anything to add? If so, leave us a comment below.

More from our Harry Potter articles HERE.

Read IMDB information on Harry Potter HERE.

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Comics & Literature

DC Fandome 2021 – Revelations, Trailers and the future

Published

2 years ago

October 18, 2021

Sarah Casserley

At the recent virtual DC Fandome 2021 over 66 million fans tuned in across 220 countries. They listened in 12 different languages. All to find out the scoop on what’s to come for the comic book franchise, new DC revelations and even watch trailers of soon to be released films and TV shows.

But, if you weren’t one of the millions to be watching from home, below is the Film, TV and Gaming announcements and revelations that would interest any DC fan.

FILMS

Black Adam

DC Fandome 2021 started with a world exclusive trailer of Black Adam! The man himself Dwayne Johnson. Along with a host of the films other stars including Pierce Brosnan, Aldis Hodge, Quintessa Swindell and Noah Centineo. They introduce themselves and the exclusive trailer.

During the 4-minute intro below, you see Johnson excitably launch his passion project. He explains how much the Black Adam universe means to him. We are also told that the film is currently in post-production with the film being released on the 29th of July 2022.

We don’t get much information or storyline from the trailer. But Dwayne’s enthusiasm for the character and the gritty darkness of what we do get in the trailer is enough, for now, to keep us excited about this Movie.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

During the day’s events, Jason Momoa was on hand to give fans an in-depth dive into the world of Aquaman. Firstly, apologising for the four-year wait. However, Momoa and director James Wan appeased fans with a host of behind-the-scenes clips. Plus a glimpse of some unusual conceptual art. Which included quirky looking desert creatures and giant grasshoppers.

We have also been promised by Wan that we are going to be getting a film that’s more mature, giving the audience something new, exciting and an experience we haven’t seen before. The 2-and-a-half-minute look into the sequel, below, was enough to make any fan excited for its theatrical release in December 2022.

DC’s League of Super-Pets

A fun animated adventure was also announced. DC’s League of Super-Pets will bring super-pets like Krypto and Ace the Bat-Hound to life for the first time.

In an exclusive trailer, fans were introduced to the two pups, voiced by Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, in a light-hearted look into the film. The full movie voice by the comedy pairing along with some other famous names such as Keanu Reeves and Vanessa Bayer is set to be released next November.

The Flash

Another film trailer to hit the DC Fandome 2021 screens was The Flash. Portrayed once again by Ezra Miller and directed by Andy Muschietti. Fans were introduced to the trailer and the concept of the film, where the Flash unlocks the DC cinematic universe. He time hops back to the ’90s where Michael Keaton, reprises his role, he originated in 1989’s ‘Batman’ and 1992’s ‘Batman Returns’.

We’re elated that we get another film with Michael Keaton as Batman. Even if the storyline does sound a little farfetched. We’re sure Muschietti will get the narrative across perfectly and the film will be an instant hit. The film is due to hit cinemas in November 2022.

The Batman

The DC Fandome 2021 team knew exactly what they were doing when they left the release of the second Batman trailer to the very end of the day. Like fans around the world, we also couldn’t wait to see more of Patterson, fully suited up, showcasing his gritty take on the hero. Director Matt Reeves, Robert Pattinson (Batman) and Zoe Kravitz (Selina Kyle/ cat woman) were there to lead the trailers release.

Granted the jury is still out if Patterson can pull of the dark knight or not but we have to admit we are excited to see him in action. We also have a sneaky suspicion that for the first time in a film setting since Michelle Pfeifferthey may have nailed the casting for Selina Kyle with Zoe Kravitz. We don’t have long left to find all this out though, as after a few Covid related interruptions Batman is now set to be released in theatres on March 4th, 2022.

Injustice and Catwoman: Hunted

If some of these DC film releases seem a little far away, fear not because we were also made aware that two animated films will be released quite soon. With Injustice’s release this October and an anime-inspired animated DC offering in the form of Catwoman on February the 8th 2022, both the feature-length animations will be available on digital, 4K and Blu-ray. To take a sneak peak of Catwoman: Hunted you can watch the trailer below.

RETURNING TV

When it came to the TV side of the DC world there were a lot of announcements and trailers mainly around continuing shows such as, Titans, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow and Stargirl along with the more anticipated trailers for:

Batwoman

Has been renewed for another season, despite the departure of Ruby Rose. The new trailer showcased its new Batwoman – Ryan Wilder played by Javicia Leslie.

Doom Patrol

Is set to be returning for a fourth season. During the announcement followers of the show were treated to a wonderfully odd and endearing mid-season trailer.

The Flash

Is set for yet another inter-universe team up as The Flash team takes on a deadly mission against the ‘Armageddon’ villains. Which could decide the fate of humankind. The villainous gang is headed up by Tony Cuttan as Despero, Arrowverse’s Tom Cavanagh as Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash and Neal McDonough as Damien Darhk.

NEW TV

Peacemaker

First seen in this summer’s ‘The Suicide Squad’ Movie, John Cena’s comedic take of the Peacemaker is set to have its own HBO Max show. The fun and quirky trailer to the first series premiered at the event. Along with a behind the scenes look at the making of the series. It shows that director James Gunn is staying true to his unique, comedic style. The Trailer also shows the other great actors involved in the series including the hilarious ‘Orange is the New Black’ star Danielle Brooks, Christopher Heyerdahl, Robert Patrick and Jennifer Holland. This eight-episode series is set to be released on 13 January.

The Sandman

Viewers of the event didn’t find out much about this Netflix offering. But we did get glimpses of Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer Morningstar. Wwhich let’s be honest along with the announcement that this is actually happening, is enough to get most of us DC fans excited about its release. There is no release date yet but I’m sure over the coming months there will be more announcements about this extraordinarily dark and forbidding series.

NAOMI

Based on the comic book series of the same name created by Brian Michael Bendis, David F. Walker and Jamal Campbell. The TV adaptation of the story was announced with a one-minute ten-second trailer. This superhero drama is based around a comic book-loving teenager who discovers she has superpowers. Her curiosity leads her onto a journey into the Multiverse in search of answers. We haven’t got a definitive release date yet, but we have been promised it will be in 2022.

GAMES

Suicide squad: Kill the Justice League

Since the announcement of this game at last year’s Fandome we haven’t had much information or even any gameplay footage. However, at this year’s event, we did get quite an in-depth trailer and a little look at the storyline. In this game, the player gets a choice of playing Harley Quinn, King Shark, Captain Boomerang or Deadshot. As they take on a new mission against an alien threat that has brainwashed the Justice League. There is still no hint to a release date or even a gameplay trailer, but we have been assured 2022 will be full of hints about the game and hopefully a conclusive release date.

Gotham Knights

Another game trailer that was released at the Fandome, that excited fans across the world was Gotham Knights. Continuing its Arkham-style adventures, Games Montreal has been working hard on the narrative and gameplay functions of this game. This game, in particular, was supposed to be released sometime in 2021 but it was delayed and we have now got a 2022 release time frame.

In this game you get to play a number of characters including Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin, and Red Hood in an open-world action online RPG in order to uncover secrets and take down the Court of Owls.

So there you have it, some of the top DC new from the Fandome 2021. What do you think about all the new announcements? What are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below..

Read our review of DC’s The Suicide Squad HERE.