Harry Potter’s Lockhart Once Married Trelawney and Cheated on Her with Bellatrix
Kenneth Branagh played Gilderoy Lockhart in Harry Potter, and some might say that it was the perfect role for him.
Professor Lockhart wasn’t the most honest man in the Potterverse – and a few years earlier, neither was the actor who portrayed him. We’re not pointing fingers, but did you know that Kenneth Branagh once cheated on his then-wife Emma Thompson (yes, the one who played the cuckoo Professor Sybill Trelawney)?
That’s right, but that was long before Harry Potter. The actors first met in 1987 on the set of Fortunes of War. After dating for two years, they made things official in 1989 and even continued to work together. Everything was well until 1995 when the couple suddenly made their separation public and stated their conflicting schedules as the reason.
However, it was later established that Branagh had actually cheated on Thompson with none other than Helena Bonham Carter, Harry Potter’s very own madwoman, Bellatrix Lestrange. This took Emma completely by surprise – she spoke to The New Yorker about being “utterly, utterly blind” to the affair in question and the general revelation that Kenneth had something with other actresses he worked with.
Infidelity takes a toll on anyone, but the star has actually managed to turn her emotion into art. Remember the iconic Love Actually scene where Karen, Thompson’s character, realizes that the necklace is a gift meant for someone else and that her husband is cheating on her?
In fact, Emma drew inspiration from her own experience with her ex-spouse’s adultery. In a 2018 interview, she acknowledged the role that her personal struggles played in delivering the scene, adding, “I had my heart very badly broken by Ken.” The actress has actually since forgiven both troublemakers, calling the whole incident “blood under the bridge.”
Imagine if Thompson had to film scenes with Branagh and Bonham Carter in Harry Potter. Shooting a movie with your ex and the woman he cheated on you with would just be plain unbearable! Thankfully, those three never shared any scenes together and remained professional.
Sources: The New Yorker