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A general rule of thumb to follow in everyday life is to say it, don’t spray it. No one wants spit flying into their face while having a simple conversation, and for the most part, we as a society are pretty good about making sure that other happens. Every now and then, though, someone does end up spraying quite a bit, and sometimes it even happens when someone’s performing a role. No, I’m not talking about when Jonathan Groff was playing King George III in Hamilton. In this case, an actress from a few of the Harry Potter movies shared that during the making of The Goblet of Fire, Michael Gambon spit into her face while he was portraying Albus Dumbledore.
Samantha Clinch, who played the uncredited role of Eloise Midgen in The Prisoner of Azkaban and The Goblet of Fire, shared on her TikTok page that during the making of the latter movie, which she described in her video as a “career highlight,” things got a little too messy while she was sharing a scene with Gambon, who passed away last year. As she reminisced:
Goblet of Fire, there’s a moment where Dumbledore needs to announce that the Dementors are coming, and obviously this is absolutely terrifying, terrifying news for everyone involved. But obviously, Dumbledore being Dumbledore, there’s a lot at stake for him. It’s a lot. Anyway, he comes over to the table that I’m at and puts his hand on my shoulder, looks at me directly in the face and said, ‘The Dementors are coming!’ Quite literally frothing at the mouth, there was spit everywhere. It might have got in my eye.
There are a lot of achievements that actors can obtain during their careers, but I imagine few, if any, can say they’ve joined Samantha Clinch in experiencing having the Tony, Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated Michael Gambon’s spit on his face. However, if you’re now planning to stream The Goblet of Fire with your Max subscription to see if you can spot this moment, don’t bother. Clinch shared that this scene didn’t end up making the movie, saying:
Dumbledore spat in my eyes, and that scene isn’t in the film. Weird, weird, I don’t know why. That would make great viewing. So that’s the moment that Dumbledore probably had one too many butterbeers and spat in my face. Good times, a career highlight, I’d say.
I’m glad that the actress took what happened in stride and now looks back on it fondly, though I can understand her disappointment that the moment wasn’t included in The Goblet of Fire’s final cut. Still, it makes for a great story to share at parties and on social media! The Goblet of Fire was Gambon’s second time playing Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts, as Richard Harris first played him in The Sorcerer’s Stone and The Chamber of Secrets before dying in October 2002. Gambon stuck around for the remainder of the main Harry Potter film series, and Jude Law later played a younger Dumbledore in the latter two Fantastic Beasts movies.
While there are no immediate plans for the film side of the Harry Potter franchise to continue, a TV series adapting the original books is in development that will air on both HBO and Max. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for updates on its progress.