Tom Felton Reacts to ‘Harry Potter’ Fans Giving Draco Malfoy a ‘Slight’ Redemption Arc

Draco Malfoy is not the hero of the Harry Potter franchise by any means, but Tom Felton thinks it’s “really cool” that his character is getting a “slight” redemption arc.

“I do love the fact that people — I mean, obviously, he is slimy, he's not exactly the most desirable character at times — but it's nice to see,” Felton, 36, told Us Weekly exclusively while promoting his partnership with Kinder Joy, nothing that there are “so many different subtle arcs now that are being discovered” within the Harry Potter fandom.

Felton played the role of Malfoy in all eight Harry Potter movies, from 2001 to 2011. While Malfoy is canonically considered the antagonist to Harry Potter’s protagonist, fans — particularly on the #DracoTok corner of TikTok and in the fanfiction community — have come to the conclusion he might not be a villain. Potterheads have speculated that perhaps the negative traits bestowed upon Felton’s character are simply because he is a product of his environment.

“It’s really, really cool to see the correlation between the fact that Harry had no parents, and he came out brilliantly with honor, love and respect. Truth being at the heart of it,” Felton added. “And Draco having both parents, but not so good ones, and that he ended up being the bully.”

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The actor added, “I think the redemption of Draco, slight redemption — I don't think he was born to be the hero at all — but the slight understanding that he was a bully because he was basically bullied. I think it's really quite cool.”

It’s been nearly three decades since the Harry Potter franchise entered the world and more generations are joining the Wizarding World each day — something that Felton says “blows my mind.” (He even joked that fans who approach him in public “weren't even born when the first film was being made.”)

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“I think we all sort of thought that when the last film was done that things would slowly sort of trickle out, as far as the fandom or the Wizarding World fandom flame, as I call it. But it just seems to be bigger than ever now,” the actor shared. “It is a huge surprise that the popularity is still growing, but at the same time, I'm a huge Potter fan myself, so I can see why it's still enjoyable and still being passed down from generation to generation.

Because he’s a self-proclaimed Harry Potter fan, when Kinder Joy revealed that they’d be bringing the Harry Potter Toy Collection to life with Funko figures, it was a no-brainer for Felton to team up with the brand.

“Kinder Joy eggs have been like my treat since I was a little wee nipper. I remember vividly my mom on Fridays picking me up from school and a Kinder Joy egg occasionally found its way into my hands and it was always a celebration, really,” Felton gushed. “It's probably the oldest treat that I remember. So, the fact that they are collaborating with Warner Bros. and Funko, and putting [out] a little mini version of me — or a character that I played, [I was like] ‘Let’s go.’”

Kinder Joy including the Harry Potter Funko Toy Collection is now available.