There were so many familiar faces in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child that it's no wonder one of them flit right under the radar, despite many fans wondering: Who is Theodore Nott? (Warning: Spoilers ahead!) As it turns out, Theodore Nott is not a new character in Harry Potter canon like Delphi or Craig Bowker Jr (RIP, friend). In fact, he was mentioned plenty of times in the original seven Harry Potter books — but usually in an offhand manner, and never with anything too consequential to the plot. You probably forgot him the way you forgot a ton of other characters, which is fair, because there are approximately 18 bajillion of them.
But in Cursed Child, Theodore Nott plays a critical role at last. A pureblood Slytherin who went to Hogwarts the same year as Draco and Harry, he lost his mother at an early age, and his father was a Death Eater sent to Azkaban in the later books. He was friends with Draco Malfoy, and J.K. Rowling said that Draco viewed him as an "equal". In fact, J.K. Rowling shared that she twice wanted to include a scene in the books depicting a conversation between Nott and Malfoy to gain some perspective on their characters, but in the end the scene was cut both times.
In the modern timeline, though, Nott is never shown onstage, but still manages to royally muck things up for our heroes — by smuggling one of the last known Time Turners. It's unclear how he came into possession of it or even how Harry got it out from under him, but seeing as his family had strong ties to the Death Eaters, he probably didn't have any good intentions. It was after hearing tell of this Time Turner that Albus cooked up his plan to go back in time to save Cedric, so basically the entire plot of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is Theodore Nott's fault.
So in honor of Theodore Nott giving us yet another Harry Potter epic, no matter how bad of a dude he is, let's take a trip down memory lane to remember the few times he appeared in the books.
His Father Was Outed As A Death Eater In Harry's Interview With The Quibbler
The first mention of Theodore in Harry Potter comes in the fifth book, when Hermione points him out to Harry along with Crabbe and Goyle as one of the boys whose fathers went to Azkaban because of Harry's allegations.
He Is One Of Only Three Students Who Can See Thestrals In Harry's Class
It is implied in this scene that he watched his mother die, although it is never clarified how that happened.
He Was A Skilled Potions Maker
He was among one of only 12 people to advance to N.E.W.T.-level Potions, where he stood next to Draco Malfoy.
He Was Described As "Weedy" And "Stringy"
Oddly was not described as "guy most likely to steal a Time Turner that your misguided progeny will find".
He Was "Clever" And "Solitary"
Rowling noted about Nott that he was one of the few in Slytherin who wasn't in an actual gang, and tended to operate alone. The narrative seems to echo this — he rarely gets into Draco's shenanigans, only once snickering about Hermione being Muggle-born, compared to other Slytherins who never missed a chance at a cheap shot.
J.K. Rowling Knows A Lot More About Him Than We Do
Rowling revealed that she knows a lot more about both Theodore Nott and Dean Thomas than ever made it into the books. Fingers crossed for some more writing on Pottermore to clarify — and in the meantime, at least Nott got a nod in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, even if he didn't so much get one in the books. Even if he did, y'know, almost massively screw up the entire world as we know it. Win some, lose some!
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One & Two (Special Rehearsal Edition Script), $17.99, Amazon
Images: Photographer Manuel Harlan/Courtesy of Harry Potter the Play; Giphy
