Harry Potter: Biggest Movie Sirius 'Plot Hole' Was Never an Actual Mistake

Summary:

• In The Order of the Phoenix, Sirius Black addressed Voldemort as “the Dark Lord” on several occasions.
• This nickname was explicitly used by Death Eaters or Voldemort’s supporters, and Sirius was neither.
• However, his family supported Voldemort, so the words “Dark Lord” were engraved in Sirius’s mind.

As it was explicitly stated in the Harry Potter books, only the Death Eaters and their sympathizers referred to Lord Voldemort as “the Dark Lord.” The most powerful Order of the Phoenix members took after Dumbledore and called their enemy by his new name, and all the others resorted to euphemisms like You-Know-Who.

Sirius Black several times addressed Voldemort as “the Dark Lord,” at least, in the movies, but it wasn’t an oversight, a plot hole, or a hint that he was a Death Eater.

Lord Voldemort Had Too Many Names

Harry Potter’s archnemesis had a plethora of names, which suited his egomaniac nature. In fact, he had a separate name for borderline every possible occasion.

When he was born, his mother Merope Gaunt named him Tom Marvolo Riddle after his Muggle father and wizard grandfather. Even as a Hogwarts student, young Tom tried to distance from his original name as much as possible. First, he referred to himself as the Heir of Slytherin; later, he came up with a new edgy nickname.

For his terrorist career, Riddle chose the name Lord Voldemort which was the anagram of his original name. The Death Eaters, of course, couldn’t address him like that: for them, he was either “Master” or “My Lord” in direct communication and “the Dark Lord” when referring to their leader without his presence.

Most wizards and even some Order of the Phoenix members called him You-Know-Who or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named; his most powerful enemies still called him Voldemort, save for Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter who could occasionally call him by his original name — Tom Riddle.

Yet in The Order of the Phoenix, Sirius Black — a member of the Order — several times referred to his enemy as “the Dark Lord.” What was that all about?

Sirius Was Raised by Voldemort Sympathizers

While many fans call it an oversight or a plot hole, Sirius Black addressing Lord Voldemort in the same fashion the Death Eaters did made perfect sense. Of course, it didn’t mean that Sirius used to be a Death Eater himself back in the day — but if you remember who he was raised by, the pieces of the puzzle start clicking.

The Blacks were a notoriously noble and rich family with great passion for the Dark Arts. When Lord Voldemort first came to power, Sirius’s parents were his avid supporters: not all old nobility became Death Eaters, but most of them sympathized with Voldemort's goals. They largely addressed him as the Dark Lord out of respect.

In his family, young Sirius must have been hearing these words numerous times a day — Dark Lord this, Dark Lord that… Sure enough, this line was imprinted in his subconscious and closely associated with his hated childhood home. Who’s to blame the man for somewhat picking up old habits after returning to Grimmauld Place?

Sirius Black only addressed his nemesis as the Dark Lord because of the strong association, not out of respect or anything like that. His occasional slipping into the wrong form of address upon arrival at his childhood home only highlights J.K. Rowling’s attention to detail is by no means an oversight or a plot hole.