Bem in Harry Potter

Remember the mysterious student from Harry Potter? This is him now

It's like trying to catch smoke... like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands

TV & Film Editor
January 24, 2024

The Harry Potter movie franchise has a fond place in the hearts of millions of fans all over the world - but plenty were baffled by a character from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and still discuss him online to this day. Need a reminder? 

In the third instalment of the hit franchise, fans were impressed but also somewhat bemused by a morbid Gryffindor student who attends Divination classes with Harry, Ron and Hermione, and who doesn’t appear in any subsequent movies. 

WATCH: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows trailer

During the film, he delivers some of the more ominous lines of the movie. Speaking about the Grim, he says: “Taking the form of a giant spectral dog, it's among the darkest omens in our world. It's an omen...of death.” Another line is: “It's like trying to catch smoke... like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands.” See what we mean? 

The character is known by the captions as ‘Bem,’ and was played by Ekow Quartey. So what was the deal with the actor, and what is he up to nowadays? 

Ekow has gone on to become a massive star - and has appeared a plenty of TV shows over the last few years, including Smothered, Breeders, Trying and Becoming Elizabeth. He also recently appeared in the National Theatre’s adaptation of The Witches, and spoke about the experience on Instagram, writing: “The Witches @nationaltheatre is now open! What a company and production to be part of! Even @cadburyuk Jeff the Postie sent some Press Night Secret Santa love! Special thanks to @alicemartyr and @ogilvyuk for making the surprise possible Well what are you waiting for?! Book da ting!” 

Ekow Quartey is now a popular actor

Ekow is also very cheerful about being known by his Hogwarts alter-ego, with his Instagram bio reading: “Yes, I am the guy from Harry Potter!” Currently working with Shakespeare’s Globe, the official TikTok account for the theatre also recently shared a hilarious video of the star referencing his Harry Potter role, writing: “Oh, you probably recognise me as the person in the artwork for ‘Much Ado About Nothing,’ […] No other reason.” 

Fans were delighted by the post, with one writing: “The boy who DELIVERED,” while another person added: “I have no doubt you’re a Shakespeare actor after you changed our lives with the most dramatic delivery in the entire HP series.” A third person added: “I quite you CONSTANTLY, the best line in the entire series.” 

Sign up to Off Camera for all the gossip and goings-on from the wonderful world of TV and film

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More TV and Film

See more