From Dudley to Daring: Harry Melling’s Cannes Shock Play
Once forever typecast as Dudley Dursley in Harry Potter, Harry Melling has made a dramatic, unrecognizable turn—literally and figuratively—at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
🔥 Pillion Makes Masculinity Marvelous (and Messy)
Melling's latest role is in Pillion, a bold LGBT drama exploring a BDSM relationship between Colin (Melling), a shy London parking warden, and Ray (Alexander Skarsgård), a commanding gay biker gang leader. Adapted from Adam Mars-Jones’s 2020 novel Box Hill, the film premiered in the prestigious Un Certain Regard section to a thunderous seven- to eight-minute standing ovation. Critics called it “what Fifty Shades of Grey should’ve been”—less about shock, more about emotional truth.
Melling’s transformation is striking: once the pudgy child actor, he’s now almost unrecognizable—leaner, more reserved, and infinitely more compelling. His anonymity allows him to shed Dudley’s caricature and take on complex, erotic roles with confidence.
☠️ Kinky, Queer & Catching Fire
The film doesn’t shy away. It features multiple orgy scenes choreographed under the guidance of intimacy coordinators taking “messy” to a professional (and consensual) level. Skarsgård called filming them “fun and playful,” while Melling praised the trust on set, saying it made what could’ve been daunting feel seamless and honest.
It's not just erotic—it's tender and funny, riffing on rom-com tropes within a dom/sub context. One review lauded it for balancing sadness, tenderness, and humor, praising both performances for their emotional resonance.
👀 Fashion Drama and Red-Carpet Revelry
Skarsgård made his own statement at Cannes—think leather pants, thigh-high fetish boots, a cheeky kiss (on the cheek) with Pedro Pascal, and a wink to kink culture via his vintage t-shirt print. Meanwhile Melling rode into town literally as a submissive—stepping onto the film circuit on the back of a real biker’s motorbike.
🏆 Why Pillion Is a Major Milestone
A breakout for Harry Melling: critics and fans alike see this performance as a seismic shift away from child-star typecasting.
Breakthrough debut for director Harry Lighton, whose daring approach layered eroticism with emotional depth and queer authenticity.
Awards buzz: Pillion was nominated for Caméra d’Or and Queer Palm, and won Best Screenplay in its section. Distribution rights have since been snapped up—including A24 in the U.S.—securing a theatrical rollout later this year.
🧭 Final Scene: A Burning Reboot of Harry’s Career
Harry Melling’s journey from Hogwarts brat to daring kink hero is more than a red-carpet headline—it’s a creative rebirth. Thanks to Pillion, he’s no longer Dudley the fat kid; he’s a 34-year-old actor fully embracing queer storytelling and bold intimacy as art.
If you thought that was merely theater shock tactics, think again. Pillion is provocative, yes—but also nuanced, poignant, and heartbreakingly human. And judging by Cannes’ applause, cinema—and fandom—is ready for that change.
