While terrorizing young audiences with her role as Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland (2010), Helena Bonham Carter also played the diabolically dark witch Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter films. Considering how evil her role was in the billion-dollar franchise, Carter left an indelible mark on audiences as a Death Eater.
However, while appreciating the opportunity to play a witch in the Harry Potter films, Helena Bonham Carter also reflected on the challenges she faced throughout the series. Specifically informing fans about having a difficult time wielding her iconic crooked wand, which fans would kill to enact with, Carter mentioned going to a school to learn the skill of wand waving.
Helena Bonham Carter Reflected on Her Journey into Becoming Bellatrix Lestrange
With a penchant for unconventional roles in critically acclaimed films like Fight Club, the Harry Potter franchise was undoubtedly a heaven in hiding for Helena Bonham Carter. Speaking with EW, the British actress reflected on how thrilled she was to take on the role of the menacing villain Bellatrix Lestrange after Helen McCrory had to give up on the role due to her pregnancy.
So they came to me and I loved it. I love magic, I love witches, I love the whole [Harry Potter] world. I was all too happy to play a witch.
Later on, Helen McCrory was eventually cast as Bellatrix’s sister Narcissa Malfoy for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and the two Deathly Hallows films. But it was Helena Bonham Carter who stole the spotlight with her creepy demeanor and rotten teeth, as the psychotic Black family sister. The actress thereafter brought Harry Potter’s biggest enemies on screen and left a mark on the audience.
There wasn’t a huge amount on the page originally. I think I probably made her a bit more insane and unhinged than she was meant to be. I wanted to be conspicuous. So the [rotten] teeth was my idea because she had been in prison so long. I wanted her to be quite savage. And I wanted that corset. It was sort of an Amazon thing. Bellatrix means a warrior.
I wanted her to be sexy and revolting at the same time. At one point she might have been attractive, but no longer. Here’s the thing: If you have messy hair, you don’t have to worry all the time about making it all perfect. It was a lot to do with keeping [all the hair and makeup people] away.
Reflecting on her journey of physically transforming into the character of Bellatrix Lestrange, Carter gradually proceeded to address the challenges she faced in channeling her magic. Playing one of the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort’s most eager minions, Carter admitted her difficulty in evoking the fearsome witch with a knack for causing chaos, through her wand-wielding skills.
Helena Bonham Carter Had to Hit the Wand-Waving Gym for the Harry Potter Films
Well, when fans think of Bellatrix Lestrange, they often envision her as a powerful and chaotic witch. And undoubtedly Helena Bonham Carter’s portrayal of this iconic villain was convincing enough for Potterheads to dream of wielding a wand just like hers and bring out the menace. However, behind-the-scenes anecdotes reveal Carter’s surprising struggle with waving her wand.
Turns out, playing Bellatrix wasn’t all dark curses and dramatic flair for Helena Bonham Carter. The actress had a rather unexpected challenge with mastering the art of wand-waving, which became her source of frustration. The actress struggled with her crooked wand so much so that she found herself enrolled in a special school for wand-waving. Shocking as it might sound, Bellatrix diligently practiced her swishes and flicks.
We went to wand school for about three weeks. We took it very very seriously. I actually got a wand blister on the [middle] finger. They kind of had different names for all the different moves, Latin ones. It was sort of based on fencing. You also always have to have an intention behind the spell.
You just feel totally emasculated on set when you’re waving a bit a wood around and nothing’s coming from it. It’s very difficult to remember that you’ve actually got the intention to kill behind it. It’s not all fun and laughs; it’s actually quite hard work.
Eventually, when Helena Bonham Carter got to cast a spell as Bellatrix in The Half-Blood Prince when she actually set Hagrid’s hut ablaze, it was a truly exciting moment for her. The actress even compared the destructive power of her wand with a rather popular game, Angry Birds.
Harry Potter films are available on Max as of February 2024.
