Oldman Gets "Sirius" Over The New "Harry Potter"

According to his manager, Gary Oldman will definitely return as Sirius Black in the upcoming fifth installment of the Harry Potter film franchise, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."

Oldman appeared in the third and fourth films, but when filming began on the fifth film without a deal in place for the actor, there was rumblings that he would not return. The tongues can stop their wagging now, though. According to fan sites GaryOldman.info and HPANA (The Harry Potter Automatic News Aggregator) Oldman's manager, Doug Urbanski, has confirmed that the deal was closed this week.

Urbanski said that he is relieved and happy that the deal is done. "I can't put my mind in the place of the producers, but I would've thought that when they read the book, a call to us would've been very high on their list," Urbanski said. "Obviously, the character of Sirius Black is key."

Urbanski told HPANA that he was baffled by the months-long silence from Warner Brothers, the studio behind the Harry Potter film franchise. He said that Oldman came very close to taking another job, which is what ultimately forced the studio's hand. "Since they had no option for Gary on this film, he was a free agent. Last week, we told them that Gary had another movie, and it was just a question of doing a deal," he said.

Urbanski added: "It's a wonderful role. ... Gary read the script last night, and he read part of it to me on the phone this morning. The end of the story is: Gary's in it. It's a terrific script, and he's so happy to be back." Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be released in theaters in 2007.

For the record, I love just about anything Oldman does. "Harry Potter" is lucky to have him. --Shannon Nolley

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