Simon Pegg cast as Headmaster in Hogwarts Legacy

Move over, Dumbledore, a new headmaster is in town. Or rather, an old one - the game is set one hundred years before the main Harry Potter series, after all.

I digress. It’s just been confirmed that none other than Simon Pegg will be voicing Hogwarts Legacy’s headmaster, Phineas Nigellus Black. The English comedian, screenwriter, producer and actor is arguably best known for his roles in Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and the Star Trek reboot series.

See Simon Pegg’s introduction to Phineas Nigellus Black in the video below.

Although this will be Pegg's wizarding world debut, it's not the first time he's been involved in a video game. He also voiced Captain Ben Finn in Fable III, and Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in Star Trek (2013).

Hardcore Harry Potter fans might already recognise his character - in the movies, Phineas can be seen in a portrait in Dumbledore’s office. In the announcement video, however, Pegg warned that he won’t fit the loveable headmaster role that fans have been used to.

“Phineas Nigellus Black is the least popular headmaster in the history of Hogwarts,” Pegg laughed. “He is sort of pompous, disinterested… He’s not a good teacher or headmaster in any way, I think he would have taken on the role of headmaster because of the gig. You know, it’s a prestigious position, I don’t think he has any interest in children’s education or being in any way a role model, it’s not really his concern. What he wants is the kudos of being the headmaster of the greatest wizarding school in the world. Yeah, he’s just a bit of an idiot, really.”

Fans don’t have long to wait before they can meet him in-game - Hogwarts Legacy is set to release on 10 February on new-gen consoles and PC, previous-gen on 4 April, and Nintendo Switch on 25 July.