Harry Potter: 5 Things Only Book Readers Will Know About Neville Longbottom

J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series is full of colourful, complex and wonderfully terrifying characters, with the author creating some of the most iconic heroes and villains in the entire fantasy genre. When it comes to the most memorable characters that the series has to offer, the name Neville Longbottom is one that should definitely be discussed. Neville Longbottom plays a major role in both the Harry Potter books and movies, although it’s fair to say that a lot of Neville’s best moments didn’t make it into the film series.

Neville Longbottom is undoubtedly one of the best characters that the Harry Potter series has to offer, even with his limited screen-time in the movies. Despite his integral role in the series, however, there’s a great deal of information that fans of the film franchise won’t know about the beloved hero. For our latest post on The Blog That Must Not Be Named, we’re ranking five details that only fans of the books will know about Neville Longbottom.

5 – His Family Believed He Was A Squib

Neville comes from a wizarding family and is the son of two famously talented sorcerers, but we learn in Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone that Neville’s grandmother and other relatives believed he was a squib (someone with magical blood but no magical abilities) for most of his childhood. Neville reveals that his great-uncle Algie set-up a series of tests to force Neville’s abilities to emerge, but nothing happened until he dropped Neville from a window and the young boy bounced down the garden to safety.

4 – Voldemort Set Him On Fire

Following Harry’s death in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, Voldemort gives Hogwarts’ remaining heroes the choice to join him. Neville steps-up and bravely opposes Voldemort, proving once and for all that the sorting hat was right to place him into Gryffindor. Voldemort punishes Neville for his defiance, however, by hitting him with the body-binding spell, placing the sorting hat onto his head and setting it on fire. Thankfully, Neville is able to break free from the hat befopre any real damage is done, which is when the Sword of Gryffindor appears to him.

3 – His Parents Are Still Alive

The Harry Potter movies lead us to believe that Neville’s parents were murdered by Bellatrix Lestrange – but the books reveal the darker and more heartbreaking truth. In Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix, Harry, Ron and Hermione run-into Neville and his grandmother in St Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. It is revealed that Neville’s parents are very much alive, but were driven insane by Bellatrix’s horrific torture. Neville is clearly shocked by his run-in with his school friends, as he talks very little about his parents and their condition.

2 – He Earned His Grandmothers Respect

Neville’s troublesome relationship with his grandmother, Augusta Longbottom, is touched upon in the Harry Potter movies – but the series never took the time to fully delve into the subject. In the books, we learn that Neville’s grandmother is somewhat disappointed that Neville isn’t more like his father, who fought courageously for the Order of the Phoenix. While Neville’s grandmother can be quite cruel when it comes to her disappointment, we discover in The Deathy Hallows that Augusta is extremely proud of her grandson and his brave actions in the battle against Voldemort.

1 – He Could’ve Been The Chosen One

The film adaptation of Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix does a good enough job of explaining the prophecy and its connection to Harry – but the film never explains how Neville Longbottom is connected to the prophecy. At the end of Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix, Dumbledore reveals that the prophecy could have referred to two children – Harry and Neville – but Voldemort made Harry the chosen one when he attempted to murder him in Godric’s Hollow. If Voldemort had attacked Neville that night, he would’ve been the chosen one instead of Harry.

Did you know any/all of these facts about Neville Longbottom? Let us know in the comments section below this post! You can also find The Blog That Must Not Be Named on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter! If you enjoy this post stay tuned for more, as we will be examining all of our favourite Wizarding World characters in the weeks to come!

The Blog That Must Not Be Named is a Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts fan blog, covering all corners of the Wizarding World! Launched in 2019, The Blog That Must Not Be Named offers the latest Wizarding World news, magical features and more!