Evanna Lynch offered to give up 'Harry Potter' paycheck to make Dumbledore's funeral happen

Luna Lovegood actor Evanna Lynch offered to hand over her Harry Potter wages in order to fund Dumbledore’s funeral in the sixth movie — but it still wasn’t enough.

In the source novel Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the Hogwarts headmaster’s funeral is a lavish affair befitting his status as one of the most renowned wizards on the planet.

The sequence is notably absent from the 2009 movie adaptation by director David Yates, with financial concerns reportedly the key problem.

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Lynch, who first played Luna in fifth movie Order of the Phoenix, told Weasley twin actors James and Oliver Phelps on their podcast Normal Not Normal — reported via Metro — that she tried to step in.

“You want to honour the characters that so many people love and have been on this huge journey with,” said the 29-year-old star.

Watch: Jude Law discusses taking on Dumbledore role in Fantastic Beasts

“That’s why I was so upset that they didn’t have a funeral for Dumbledore after all he did, all he meant to Harry, all he gave.”

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Lynch said she went to speak to producer David Heyman in order to advocate for the scene which, in the book, features a whole host of magical creatures paying their respects.

She said: “David Heyman was like: ‘It’s just too expensive’. And I actually said: ‘Take some of my paycheck, because I think it’s worth it.’

“And he was like: ‘Evanna, it wouldn’t cover it!’”

Lynch further revealed that the production had to add CGI tears to characters, including her own, because the scene in which characters raise their wands in tribute to Dumbledore “wasn’t sad enough”.

Dumbledore was originally played by Richard Harris in the first two Potter movies, with Michael Gambon stepping up after his predecessor passed away in 2002.

In the recent Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them series, Jude Law has portrayed a younger version of Dumbledore, with the series poised to explore the character’s relationship with childhood friend — and future dark wizard — Gellert Grindelwald.

Read more: Dumbledore and Grindelwald centre stage in Fantastic Beasts 3

Grindelwald has been played by Johnny Depp in the first two Beasts movies, but Mads Mikkelsen is due to replace him in the third film, which is currently in production at Leavesden Studios.

Shooting on Fantastic Beasts 3 was recently halted due to a positive COVID-19 case, but things are still moving ahead for a release in July 2022.

Watch: Trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald