The 5 big stars who very nearly landed acting roles in Harry Potter.

The actors in the Harry Potter film franchise are so familiar, it’s hard to imagine anyone else’s faces would suit the characters.

But of course, films involve auditions, so there are plenty of stars who missed out on some of the series’ iconic roles. Some, very narrowly.

Here are five of the huge names who didn’t quite make it to the Hogwarts party.

Robin Williams as Hagrid

Images: Getty and Warner Bros.

Robin Williams could make any film shine. But in this case for him, it just wasn't meant to be.

It was revealed by the films' casting director this week that the beloved actor, who died in August 2014, was initially Warner Bros' first choice to play Hagrid.

He lost out to Scot Robbie Coltrane after JK Rowling insisted that all her characters were played by UK actors.

Tim Roth as Snape

Images: Getty and Warner Bros.

Tim Roth's kids were, quite understandably, super keen for him to take on the role of Severus Snape. But the 55-year-old turned it down to play in Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes instead, saying "the idea of being an ape was too good". Wonder how he feels about that now.

Nonetheless, it made way for the wonderful Alan Rickman, who died last year, to play our favourite Slytherin.

Naomi Watts as Narcissa Malfoy

Images: Getty and Warner Bros.

Despite having lived in Australia, Naomi Watts was actually eligible for the role because she was born and mostly raised in the UK. So, she indeed met JK Rowling's strict UK-actors-only rule.

But her management turned down the role of Draco Malfoy's mum before Watts, 48, had even heard about it.

In the end, it went to Helen McCrory.

Hugh Grant as Gilderoy Lockhart

Images: Getty and Warner Bros.

Truth be told, we can very easily see how Hugh Grant would have effortlessly slipped into this role.

With his floppy hair and silky-smooth talk, the 56-year-old actor would have been a perfect fit for the role of the egotistic Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

But the British rom-com hunk had to pull out due to scheduling conflicts, making way for Kenneth Branagh.

Tilda Swinton as Professor Trelawney

Images: Getty and Warner Bros.

Tilda Swinton, 56, never fails to pull off eccentric characters. It's practically her speciality.

But once again, scheduling conflicts meant she had to knock the role of batty professor Sybill Trelawney back, according to an interview she gave in 2003 with CBBC.

And we got the equally brilliant Emma Thompson. So no loss there.