Harry Potter's Harry Melling unrecognisable after weight loss

He was known as Harry Potter’s spoilt and annoying cousin Dudley Dursley, but now actor Harry Melling is nearly unrecognisable after an incredible ‘glow up’ which saw him slim down so much he says fans no longer recognise him.

The now 31-year-old admitted it is a “blessing” he no longer gets recognised for playing portly Dudley Dursley in JK Rowling’s wizarding film series.

The actor now works in theatre and television, and has spoken of moving on in his career after the hugely popular series, which spawned eight movies, came to an end almost ten years ago.

He spoke to People about how trimming down in his teenage years means fans no longer spot him.

“I think it was an unconscious thing when it started to happen,” he told the publication of losing weight.

“I went to drama school when I was 18 and that's kind of where the weight shifted, not for any sort of major need on my side, but it's just something that just happened.

Harry said he saw it as the perfect opportunity for a new start.

“And I've done a lot since drama school, went to do lots of theatre. I think one of the blessings of that sort of stage in my life was the fact that I didn't get recognised,” he added.

“I had this history of being part of the films, but also I felt like I had the opportunity to sort of cause a new start, which I think is useful.”

He makes appearances in several projects streaming on Netflix, including action film The Old Guard, thriller The Devil All the Time, and a new show entitled The Queen's Gambit.

He joked that he hoped his presence on the streaming service doesn’t mean viewers “get bored” of seeing him as many binge stream content due to the coronavirus lockdown.

Reporting by Danny Thompson.

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