Helena Bonham Carter reveals Bellatrix Lestrange secret in unearthed Harry Potter details

Bellatrix gets some of the most bone chilling scenes in both the Harry Potter books and movies, but the character wasn’t introduced as Helena Bonham Carter until the fifth film instalment The Order of the Phoenix. Initially a Black, Bellatrix was Sirius’ cousin and part of a family of good witches and wizards before marrying Rodolphus Lestrange and turning dark for Lord Voldemort. She is also Narcissa Malfoy’s sister, but Draco’s mother suffered much more of a crisis of conscience during the second wizarding war, caring much more for her son’s mental state than blindly following the Dark Lord’s will.

It’s been years since fans last saw Bonham Carter as the gripping character, but it turns out the reason the actress so fully morphed into the evil witch was because she had reams and reams of papers to study the character at her disposal.

One of the last times The Crown actress reflected on the monumental film role was when she returned to Bellatrix for the hugely-popular Harry Potter world ride Escape from Gringotts.

Bonham Carter filmed scenes for the rollercoaster in Florida.

And despite having spent several years away from the dark-haired antagonist, The Crown star was able to slip back into Bellatrix’s voice with ease.

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“But that’s what I love doing. And then you have to be open to everything else.

“And learning your lines,” the Princess Margaret star went on.

Bonham Carter then went even further to say she uses wardrobe and the particular physicality of each character to full immerse herself.

There’s no shortage of these in Bellatrix Lestrange, that’s for sure, who is always seen sporting bedraggled jet black curls, her skin pale white.

“And then you root it in physical stuff like costume, teeth and makeup,” the actress added.

Reddit user sirlionel13 wrote: “My theory is that in order to make a Horcrux, you must consume the flesh and blood of your victim. Cannibalism has, throughout history, been associated with gaining strength, power, or health from the dead.

“Whether it be to gain the strength of a defeated enemy, share the metaphysical power of a deceased member of the community, or a simple medicinal practice to rid the body of ailments, humans have had the idea that eating other humans could aid them in some way.

“This was fairly common up until the arrival of modern medicine throughout the world.”

They continued: “Even when Europeans were criticizing cannibals in the Americas, they were eating dried human tissue as medicine. However, by today’s standards, talking about cannibalism can easily produce a gag reflex in the people listening.

“Necromancy (the more fantastical version of it, at least) is the art of using the dead for power and was one of the reasons witches were so feared in the middle ages. That is essentially what a Horcrux is: killing to gain power. Why not take it a step further and include the actual body?”

“It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume that a black magician would kill someone specifically to use their body for necromancy – and this sounds like one of the darkest possible arts to me. And this is why this really stands out to me: the creation of a Horcrux is meant to be done by murdering someone, and therefore splitting your soul,” the fan added. 

source: express.co.uk