Paapa Essiedu Says He Took Snape Role With 'Open Eyes' Despite Backlash

Paapa Essiedu says he "wouldn't have taken this job on" if he couldn't handle the backlash over his casting as Severus Snape in HBO's upcoming "Harry Potter" series. The actor spoke Thursday night at the TIME100 Next Gala in New York, where he was honored as one of Time's 100 rising stars.

"Obviously, my priority is the work," Essiedu told Variety. "I wouldn't take this job on [otherwise], but I walk into it with open eyes. I understand the broad spectrum of what the reaction to what we are doing means, and I take that mantle on with an open and full heart."

What does the new Snape look like?

HBO's first-look image already signaled a deliberate break from Alan Rickman's version. Essiedu's Snape wears shoulder-length dreadlocks and a more gothic silhouette — a zip-up leather jacket and a flowing, oversized black cloak replace the character's signature buttoned-up robes.

"I think the aesthetic is important," Essiedu said, grinning at the suggestion that his Snape was the more stylish of the two adaptations. "I don't know if style is necessarily at the forefront of my mind when generating the character, but I think the way he looks tells so much about who he is — and who he wants people to think he is. It's all incredibly well thought through and collaborated with the incredible costume department."

How has he handled the abuse?

Essiedu has previously told The Sunday Times of London that he received racially motivated death threats after his casting was announced. He said those threats have "fueled" him to make the character his own.

At the gala, he praised his colleagues on the production. "The whole team has been so supportive of me," he said. "I've also been blown away by a lot of the support and well-wishes and excitement."

Who is Paapa Essiedu?

Essiedu built his reputation in British theatre and television. In 2016 he became the first Black actor to play Hamlet for the Royal Shakespeare Company, a performance that won him the Ian Charleson Award (an annual prize for classical roles by actors under 30). He later earned two BAFTA nominations, for "I May Destroy You" and "The Lazarus Project."

Warner Bros. executives are touting the series as the "streaming event of the decade," and the project could push the award-winning actor to international stardom.

What happens next?

"I'm really proud of what I've seen so far," Essiedu said. "There are so many people who worked so hard on this project — and who it means so much to. It's been a long time coming. It's been a long time that people have been saying a lot of things, and now's the time for people to engage with what we made."

Season 1, adapted from "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," debuts on HBO Max on Dec. 25 — a Christmas premiere that will put Essiedu's Snape, leather jacket and all, in front of a global audience.