Cillian Murphy finally addressed the questions and speculation about whether he would play Voldemort in the upcoming television adaptation of Harry Potter. Amid online chatter that he might take on the role of the iconic villain, Murphy clarified during an episode of the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast on Thursday, September 11, 2025, that he will not be playing Voldemort in the TV show.He gave a one-word response, "No," adding that his kids occasionally show him the rumors but that he doesn’t know anything about the project. Furthermore, the Oppenheimer star said that Ralph Fiennes, who played the character in the Harry Potter movies, would be an especially hard act to follow."It's really hard to follow anything Ralph Fiennes does. He's the man. An absolute acting legend. Good luck to whoever is going to fill those shoes," he said.Cillian Murphy at the 96th Academy Awards (Image via Dania Maxwell / Getty Images)Murphy also joked about why he doesn’t want to play Voldemort, referencing the villain’s snake-like slits in place of a nose. He said he doesn’t want to lose his own nose for the role because he’s "very attached to it."The new Harry Potter series is scheduled to premiere on HBO in 2027. Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout, and Arabella Stanton have long been announced to play the golden Trio of Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, respectively. While Voldemort has yet to be cast, John Lithgow, who previously worked with Fiennes in Conclave, has announced that he will play Albus Dumbledore.Cillian Murphy is Steve, a headteacher in a reform school, in a new movieWhile Murphy won’t appear in the Harry Potter series, he will star in Steve, a new film where he plays the headteacher of a residential reform school who secretly struggles with alcohol and substance abuse. The movie is an adaptation of Max Porter's novella, Shy, which Porter has also written, with Small Things Like These filmmaker Tim Mielants as the director. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostWhile Shy, also a character in the movie, is the subject of Porter's novella, the focus shifts to the weary headmaster fighting for Shy and the other students' behalf in the reform school. Cillian Murphy plays the dedicated teacher grappling with his own problems in a place where "very disturbed young men" are sent to learn to manage their aggression and possibly make something of themselves.Alongside Cillian Murphy, Jay Lycurgo (Half Bad: The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself) stars as Shy, whose struggles are told in parallel to Steve's. Tracey Ulman, Simbi Ajikawo, Roger Allam, Emily Watson, Joshua Barry, Douggie McMeekin, Charles Beaven, and Marcus Garvey also star in the film.Steve premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and will be released in theaters on Friday, September 19, 2025, before arriving on Netflix on October 3. Porter serves as executive producer, with Murphy also producing alongside Alan Maloney.Cillian Murphy is also set to return as Tommy Shelby in an upcoming epic crime drama directed by Tom Harper, The Immortal Man. It's a continuation of his hit British series Peaky Blinders, which will star Stephen Graham and Rebecca Ferguson.