Hogwarts Legacy has revealed that the game's Headmaster will be played by Simon Pegg, previously seen in Doctor Who and Star Wars. For his role in Hogwarts Legacy, Pegg will be playing the role of Hogwarts Headmaster, and will be doing his best to be as dislikable as possible.
The latest game set in the Wizarding World has developed a tendency to reveal its characters via Twitter, recently announcing the new Hogwarts Legacy Herbology Professor in a Tweet. The game, which is set a full hundred years prior to the events of Harry Potter, will feature a cast of characters many will know by name, but that will be new faces to the franchise. Among these individuals is the new Hogwarts Legacy Headmaster who, despite having developed an unfortunate reputation that precedes him, is yet to appear in a game outside a passing portrait.
Though some suspected the identity of the Hogwarts Legacy Headmaster, the game has announced in a tweet that it will indeed be Phineas Nigellus Black, a distant relative of Sirius Black. Described in a later tweet as a "cantankerous, lazy and vain pure-blood with a myopic view of the world," Black will be brought to life by Simon Pegg, who will strive to make him as dislikable as possible. Prioritizing his own status over the safety of his students, Black is perhaps a polar opposite to Dumbledore, who would come to eventually succeed Black's own successor as the Hogwarts Headmaster.
Having Phineas Nigellus Black as the Headmaster has several implications for Hogwarts Legacy. Firstly, it suggests that the relationship between the player and Headmaster will be a bit confrontational rather than beneficial, and that the player will have to progress through the game while working against the Headmaster. He comes as a clear contrast to lively characters, such as the new Hogwarts Legacy Charms Professor, and may have some dark secrets the player can uncover throughout their time at Hogwarts, if his reputation within the Harry Potter universe is anything to go by.
With it being confirmed that the Unforgivable Curses will be in Hogwarts Legacy, and that the player will be able to utilize them if desired, Phineas Black's position as the Hogwarts Legacy Headmaster suggests that the game may be relishing in Harry Potter's darker tones. With the open-world game having such a massive array of locations to explore, the Headmaster must have some secrets waiting to be uncovered.
Hogwarts Legacy launches February 10, 2023 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, on April 4 for PS4 and Xbox One, and on July 25 for Switch.
