Gary Oldman Requested Harry Potter Filmmakers to Go Out of Script and Smack One of the Most Iconic Villains in the Franchise

Among the plethora of prolific actors that starred in the franchise, Gary Oldman was arguably the biggest acting talent Harry Potter witnessed throughout its eight installments. And for an actor who initially took the role only for the money, he put a lot of passion into his part of Sirius Black, and despite appearing in three entries, he cemented himself as one of the most beloved in the franchise.

Following his passion for the job, Oldman did go on to bring his own ideas into the mix for the character, which resulted in one of the most satisfying moments in The Order of the Phoenix

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Punching Jason Isaacs Wasn’t in the Script

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, one of the franchise’s major antagonists gets punched by Sirius Black, kickstarting an epic fight between the Death Eaters and the Order of the Phoenix. But interestingly, punching Jason Isaacs’ Lucius Malfoy wasn’t in the script and was something The Dark Knight Star came up with, and the director was on board with it. In one of the behind-the-scenes videos for The Order of the Phoenix, Gary Oldman is heard saying,

“I just love to try one… Where I walk straight up to [Isaacs], he turns, and he has this look of a slight surprise on his face, and I deck him!”

Excited by the idea, the creators rolled with it, which ended up making the final cut, and witnessing Lucius Malfoy getting decked was gratifying for fans.

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Doing Harry Potter was a breath of fresh air for Gary Oldman

Initially, Gary Oldman took the role of Sirius Black for the paycheck, considering he previously avoided taking movies for several years in order to spend time with his family. However, it didn’t take him long to get attached to the role, as he expressed that pulling off Sirius Black was surprisingly difficult. But the challenge did pay off, as keeping in mind the actor was famous for doing rated-R projects, tackling a movie that his kids could enjoy was a breath of fresh air. Per CBS News, he was quoted saying,

“I’ve done so much R-rated work, it’s nice to have a job you can show your kids.”

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Improvising the punch wasn’t the lone thing Oldman added, as the Oscar-winner also suggested the iconic hairstyle for the character, which is beloved by the entire fandom.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is available to stream on Max.