Before they bring Hogwarts to life in 2027, we’re getting our first look atNick FrostandDominic McLaughlintogether on screen — and it’s not in a wizarding robe or castle corridor. The pair, who will playHagrid and Harry Potter in HBO’s highly anticipatedHarry Pottertelevision reboot, appear side by side in the newly released trailer forGrow, a feel-good Sky Original brimming with pumpkins, sabotage, and unexpected connections. The family film will make its World Premiere at this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival on Saturday, August 16, before arriving exclusively on Sky Cinema from October 10.
Billed as a charming, all-ages story,Growfollows a no-nonsense farmer in the self-proclaimed “Pumpkin Capital of the World”whose quiet life is turned upside down when her estranged niece, Charlie, comes to stay. Determined to make her mark, Charlie enters the fiercely competitive local pumpkin-growing contest. With some help from her unusual plant powers — and her pumpkin “Peter” — she begins to blossom, forming bonds with the farm, the quirky townsfolk, and a brand-new way of life.
The film boasts a stellar British ensemble cast, including Frost (Harry Potter,How to Train Your Dragon),Joe Wilkinson(After Life),Tim McInnerny(Gladiator II),Alan Carr(Nativity!),Kathryn Drysdale(Bridgerton), Fisayo Akinade (Heartstopper), andSharon Rooney(My Mad Fat Diary). They’re joined byGolda Rosheuvel(Bridgerton),Priya-Rose Brookwell(The Lazarus Project), McLaughlin (Harry Potter),Jane Horrocks(Bloods), andJeremy Swift(Ted Lasso). Scottish filmmakerJohn McPhaildirects.
Nick Frost on Becoming Hagrid
WhileGrowcaptures Frost in whimsical farming mode, the actor is also preparing to step into one of fantasy’s most beloved roles — Rubeus Hagrid — for HBO’s upcomingHarry Pottertelevision reboot. Covering one book per season over a 10-year run, the series is already one of the most anticipated productions in recent memory.Speaking exclusivelyto Collider’sSteve Weintraubfor his recent role inHow to Train Your Dragon, Frost explained how he’s approaching Hagrid with both reverence and his own interpretation:
“You get cast because you’re going to bring something to that. While I’m really aware of what went before me in terms of Robbie [Coltrane]’s amazing performance, I’m never going to try and be Robbie. I’m going to try and do something, not ‘different,’ I think you have to be respectful to the subject matter, but within that, there’s scope for minutia. I always read Hagrid as he’s like a lovely, lost, violent, funny, warm child. I think the beauty of being able to do a book a season means I get to explore that a lot more, and I can’t wait. He’s funny! I want it to be funny and cheeky and scared and protective and childlike. That’s what I’m planning on doing.”
It’s a massive commitment — Frost revealed each season will take “ten or eleven months” to shoot — but he seems more energized than daunted:
“I’m just so excited to get going. I’ve gone in to do head sculpts and have your hand stand and stuff, and they say, ‘Oh, have a look at this.’ And you’re like, ‘Wow. That’s the coolest thing.’ I love films. I’ve loved cinema my whole life, so to be part of that universe now and that they’re showing me, like, a dancing mushroom, it’s like, ‘That is so cool!’”
TheHarry Potterreboot began filming this summer at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, with Frost starring alongside McLaughlin as Harry Potter,Arabella Stantonas Hermione Granger, andAlastair Stoutas Ron Weasley.John Lithgowwill play Dumbledore,Paapa Essiedusteps into Snape’s robes, andJanet McTeertakes on McGonagall.
Growwill land on Sky Cinema from 10th October.
Harry Potter
