I wrote this article for astrology and Harry Potter fans around the time when Deathly Hallows: Part 1 was in theaters. The information remains relevant and I hope quite fascinating for astrology students.

Here is a planetary glimpse at the actors of the Harry Potter saga revealing the driving force and creative intelligence behind this endearing story, its incarnation onto the movie screen, its success and longevity.

I spent hours researching the birth data of the majority of the cast. By that I mean, I looked up the birth date, place, and time- if possible- of the actors who played the following characters: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley, Fred and George Weasley, Molly Weasley, Rubeus Hagrid, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape, Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy, Narcissa Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Horace Slughorn, Pomona Sprout, Dolores Umbridge, Ollivander, Peter Pettigrew, Griphook, Aberforth Dumbledore; a total of 27 characters and 1 amazing author, J.K. Rowling.

While their birthdays were easily found, the times and places of birth were not. From their birthdays alone, using 12 o’clock Noon as the birth time for each of the actors, I brought up charts to see what signs the planets occupied on those days. By far, this is NOT a serious research project. Yet, the birth days alone revealed interesting correlations between the actors and their characters. So, does art imitate life? You bet! That’s what good art is! After all, aren’t we all participating in the Divine Life, the dance, the play of planetary energies here on this earth stage?

In the (limited) observation of the actors’ birthdays, I created a spreadsheet to organize and tally up which signs the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter occupied at the time of birth for each person. These six planets are who I kept my eye on in particular. The Sun for an actor’s physicality and presence necessary for performance; The Moon for a sense of calling, their feelings, and where the actor is drawn/what they love; Mercury for communication and speech; Venus for the arts and joy of the creative process; Mars for the courage and energy to put oneself ‘out there’ as a performer; and Jupiter for the interest to explore and be another character, participating in something greater than oneself.

The most notable correlation came from the planet Mars, perhaps in part due to the intense plot having so much to do with defending, protecting, battling, and competing- in sporting events for some, to attract attention for others, or to wage war against a higher authority for yet others.  Mars is the warrior, the athlete, the defender of truth, whatever truth is believed to be worth defending. So it’s not uncommon to assume that if Mars is strong in a person’s natal chart that the individual would be valiant and victorious, that those traits and actions would come easy for him or her; and if weak, the individual may appear either cowardly, an awkward bully perhaps, or in some other individualized way challenged by this vulnerable quality within themselves.

The two bravest characters (at least in my opinion, particularly in the last movie), Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom, are portrayed by two actors (Daniel Radcliffe and Matthew Lewis, respectively) with debilitated Mars in their natal charts! Did J.K. Rowling and the casting directors give these two young men the stage they’ve always dreamed of to fulfill an inner longing, to feel what it ‘could be like’? Was this a driving factor in their acceptance of the roles in the first place? Did the underlying victory and bravery continued to inspire them as actors while the scripts unfolded?

At the time of her birth, the actress Helen McCrory, Narcissa Malfoy, also had Mars debilitated, and isn’t it interesting that her character -among all those in Voldemort’s army- mustered the strength and courage to protect her own son and announce to Voldemort that Harry was dead, even when she knew he was not!

The casting director paired Helen with Jason Isaacs, who plays Narcissa’s husband, Lucius Malfoy.  On Jason’s birthday, the Moon was debilitated in Scorpio, a Mars-ruled, powerful and deeply emotional sign, a probing sign encouraging the pursuit of justice and truth no matter what the cost. Mars is the underlying, strong energy portrayed quite nicely through this couple, whose uncertain loyalty to the Dark Lord surely created confusing role models for the instability and inability of their son, Draco. Narcissa and Lucius stood by Voldemort until the end, yet didn’t always act with full conviction and loyalty.

Then there are the actors with Mars in Leo.  Here is the warrior-energy of Mars positioned in the dramatic sign of Leo. You know, Leo… “Look at me, I want to be the best and most powerful “, “I am your leader, I am Number One”.  This makes for quite a fierce, heated combination for battling and protecting, with the risk of shifting the focus onto one’s own rights and truths, one’s personal ego-driven wants and desires, and slipping from the initial goal if one is not careful. Mars in Leo presents wonderfully powerful and convincing villains! With Mars in the illuminating, powerful sign of Leo, are they immaturely preserving and defending their ego and personal desires for total control and power; or are they striving with some level of maturity for the highest good for one and all and defending that which will uplift and not destroy?

Not surprising, we find Mars in Leo in the birthdays of the actors portraying Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy, and Draco Malfoy (Ralph Fiennes, Jason Isaacs, and Tom Felton respectively). When it comes to Lucius and Draco… like father, like son!? Amazing really. The casting directors were brilliant.

And then there’s Snape! God love Snape. He has walked the fence through the entire journey, for his own good reason, defending his truth (Mars) and continually keeping us guessing and wondering which side he was on. The marvelous and deeply missed actor, Alan Rickman, who played Severus Snape, had Mars in Gemini, the twins. Mars is the planet that gives courage and action. In Gemini, people are capable of doing two or multiple things at once, and in Mars, it will be defensive! Alan was the only actor in the list of cast members (albeit an incomplete list) who had Mars in Gemini at the time of his birth!  Did I mention the brilliant casting directors?

Other points of interest:

Professor Dumbledore, portrayed by actor Michael Gambon, is the only actor with Mercury in Libra. Mercury, the voice of reason; Libra, the mediator and diplomat… Here we see the ability and willingness to intellectually understand both sides of an issue and mediate with calm certainty, a guiding force able to juggle duality with grace and dignity.

Daniel Radcliffe and Bonnie Wright— Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter by the end of the story– have natal Moons conjunct in the mystical, romantic Pisces. I kind of wish their connection was portrayed with a bit more passion, but the gentleness and ‘unspoken’ love of Pisces was evident.

Emma Watson, Hermione Granger, is the only actor (out of the 27 researched) who has Sun in Aries, a sign ruled by Mars. She was one of the few, if not only, in the researched cast who was born of Muggles. Time and time again, Hermione’s sharp insight, initiative, and courage to act on her instincts carried Harry, Ron, and herself out of harm’s way. They would’ve been lost without her.

Emma and Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) share Jupiter in Gemini. Learning and growing together throughout the adventure, Ron became Hermione’s husband in the end, and it is the planet Jupiter who represents learning, growing, adventure, and the husband in a woman’s chart!

Jupiter is the ruler of Pisces, the sign which binds Daniel Radcliffe and Bonnie Wright (Harry and Ginny Potter). Clearly, Jupiter also has a large impact in this saga, as its energy flows throughout the story and balances the warring energy of Mars with its philosophy, education, justice, and the spirit of adventure. Jupiter is also the planet of children, and let’s not forget, the entire global audience of fans has watched these children actors grow up over the years and the story originated as a children’s book.

Molly, Ginny, Fred, and George Weasley— actors Julie Walters, Bonnie Wright, and Oliver and James Phelps respectively— all have Sun in Aquarius. Astrologically, they ARE family!

Professor Pomona Sprout, portrayed by actress Miriam Margolyes, has five planets in Virgo, the Earth sign often depicted as a woman with wheat in her hand. Sprout, as you know, taught the students at Hogwarts how to grow herbs and plants for use in magical potions. Did I mention the brilliance of the casting… oh yes. Twice already.

Initially, I looked to see which conjunctions occurred on each birth date, for each individual, to determine which conjunction was the most dominant in the group. Not surprising- 15 out of the 27 actors have Sun conjunct Mercury (a common conjunction, but important to good acting, particularly when it comes to expression and dialogue) and 10 out of 27 actors have Sun conjunct Venus (putting oneself into the arts). This tied with 10 out of 27 actors with Moon conjunct Venus (expressing emotions through art).

Overall, the signs which dominate, which have the highest combined total of planets in a particular sign on the days of birth of these 27 actors and the author JK, revealed the heaviest influence coming from Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, and Leo. This is interesting because Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces are the last three signs of the zodiac and deal more with Universal Consciousness than any other signs. So it’s little wonder that these characters had such a huge universal appeal; and of course Leo, the sign most associated with performance and fame. I mean, just look at the box office numbers!

The axis between self and others, between Self-Consciousness and Universal Consciousness and brotherhood is the overall theme in Harry Potter, an evolving story depicting collective concepts that challenge the consciousness of humanity regarding good and evil, regarding individual need versus group need. The One needed the Many, who operated in accord, in order to succeed.

I found it interesting also that among the 27 actors researched, Venus showed up the most in the sign of Capricorn, a Saturn-ruled sign. Venus represents the performing arts. Saturn represents longevity. At the time of this writing, I had the opportunity to attend a concert where a live orchestra performed the entire soundtrack while the movie was playing on a large screen behind them. The many ways in which Potter ‘art’ is available to the public will keep the story alive and the loyal fans happy…”always”.

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Written by Renate Maria Bell -certified Vedic Astrologer, Jyotish Visharada, and approved teacher with the Council of Vedic Astrology. She can be reached at renatembell@aol.com 2022© Do not use, post, repost, or reprint in part or in whole without the expressed written consent of the author.

Photos from movies taken by the author from purchased Harry Potter: The Postcard Collection published by Insights; Image of J. K. Rowling courtesy of wikipedia