Severus Snape has been a fan favorite character since book one. My story with Snape only started in 2018, but I was spellbound from his first scene. I read all the books for him and finished the rest of the movies just two years ago. Snape is already one of the most misunderstood characters of Harry Potter. From the movies, some on-screen actions, changed to make him more sympathetic, became points of contention among the fanbase. People have been arguing for decades that his character was irredeemably selfish, hateful, or creepy. The new series promised a faithful adaptation. Who could be more excited for this than Snape fans who have been waiting for people to recognize him in his entirety? Some of the most popular fan-made videos on Snape were created to highlight this oversight. When the reboot was initially announced, I was so scared they wouldn’t follow the books, and it looks like they're teasing that happening. We need book accurate Severus. We need to see our greasy, teenaged half-blood with his hooked, aquiline nose to the desk, a curtain of black hair covering his face like a protective shield. The character who was mistaken for a vampire by the characters and fans alike. Described by his peers as, to put it bluntly, ugly, we are told he was worryingly thin, with a sickly, anemic complexion, and had teeth so bad even the British took issue with it. A Potions prodigy and the youngest professor in Hogwarts history, he was only 31 years old in the first book and died without even reaching 40. Yet, so many fans found an appeal within this description. His appearance, ancestry, and class in life is integral to his character- influencing his childhood experiences, his later dubious actions, and path of redemption, if you should call it that. How he chose to treat others and how others chose to treat him. Not to mention his "half-blood", well, bloodline. Tobias Snape, a British, abusive, working-class Muggle and Eileen Prince, an English (possibly Irish) pureblood. It’s what makes him him. I understand many people dislike Snape– I believe him to be a complex, morally grey character myself. However, if you're simply tired of official reboots that construct completely new characters parading names stolen from the source material, I'd appreciate your support. If this gains enough traction, I'd like to see if other characters could be faithfully adapted as well. Easier said than done, right? We need to see the good and bad of all characters, but especially the moments that we missed out on in the first movies. There are many things that I'd like to expand on here but for the sake of time, I hope you'll check out my other arguments when they come out. Please don’t misunderstand me, I’m not one to shy away from indulging in fan-made headcanons, no matter how far removed from the source material they may be. I also want to make it clear that I am not promoting hate, nor do I support prejudiced comments directed towards any proposed actors for their skills or identities. I’ve been called names for liking this character in the past and I do not want to be subjected to that in the future, as I am first generation and mixed black and asian. I do not wish for anyone working on this series to experience that as well… more than what is already being said. HBO's reboot is set to start production in Summer 2025. It's said that the filming will go on for the next few years. I believe immediate action is required to push for book accurate Snape. This is Snape's last chance to be done justice. Any changes made here can and will become canon. In ten years, I want new and old fans alike to be able to see his true character in this series. I don't think his name should be so flippantly used or his real character so easily forgotten on a whim. To producers, Snape fans make up nearly the largest part of the fanbase. I’d ask that you’d put effort into researching his character and acting accordingly. Please do not let us down.

Illustration by Jim Kay.