The Magical History Of Cedric Diggory From Harry Potter
When audiences think of "Harry Potter," their minds go to main characters like Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, or popular side characters like Draco Malfoy and Luna Lovegood. Another name that should come to mind is Cedric Diggory, a Hufflepuff student that plays a major role in the fourth film "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." He competes in the Triwizard Tournament alongside Harry, completing dangerous tasks throughout the school year in an effort to win eternal glory and 1,000 Galleons.
Though Cedric's time in the franchise is unfortunately cut short, there's no doubt that he makes a lasting impression. His loyalty, how he treats those around him, and how he handles the challenges of the tournament make him a memorable character in the eyes of both the audience and those around him in the series.
While some only consider Cedric as a Triwizard champion that couldn't complete the final task, there is much more to the character. From the on-screen entrance suggested by Robert Pattinson, the actor who portrayed him, to being the first major on-screen death in the franchise, there's no forgetting this Hufflepuff. Grab your wand as we head into the maze and share the magical history of Cedric Diggory.
He's a Hufflepuff
Many of the characters in the "Harry Potter" films are Gryffindors or Slytherins. Sometimes a Ravenclaw like Luna is included in the mix. But Cedric Diggory is a Hufflepuff, the fourth Hogwarts House. Known for their badger mascot and yellow color, Hufflepuffs are loyal and just. Though his time in the series is short, his actions prove he is a Hufflepuff through and through.
This loyalty is clear when Cedric shares what he knows about the golden egg with Harry in the Triwizard Tournament. In Cedric's eyes, Harry told him about the dragons of the first task, so it was only right to return the favor after the Hufflepuff knew how to solve the egg. When Harry and Cedric reach the Triwizard Cup at the same time during the third task of the tournament, Cedric refuses to take the cup in the book, wanting Harry to win because he saved the Hufflepuff's life twice in the maze. It's a big decision, that also it prevents Cedric from being in Harry's debt.
All of the decisions we see Cedric make are him trying to stay loyal to his school, Hufflepuff, and those he deems worthy. Despite the majority of Hogwarts turning against Harry during the tournament, Cedric sees him as another Hogwarts champion and stays loyal to him because of that. He doesn't turn his back on the Gryffindor just because they are competing against each other.
He plays the same Quidditch position as Harry
Harry Potter is well-known for his role as the Gryffindor seeker, especially because he started playing Quidditch during his first year at Hogwarts. Typically first years aren't allowed to play Quidditch, but a special exception was made for The Boy Who Lived. One of Harry's enemies, Draco Malfoy, is a seeker as well. But they aren't the only ones. Cedric plays seeker for the Hufflepuff Quidditch team during his time at Hogwarts.
When Cedric is first introduced as a member of the Quidditch Team, it's in relation to his size. In the book "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," Angelina Johnson, a Gryffindor chaser, asks if Cedric is the "tall, good-looking" member of the Hufflepuff team. Later, Harry notes that Cedric may not have the typical seeker build. "Seekers were usually light and speedy, but Diggory's weight would be an advantage in this weather because he was less likely to be off course." These comments are made in preparation for an upcoming match.
During that match, Cedric catches the Snitch, allowing Hufflepuff to win. This is the same match that Harry falls off his broom. When Cedric's father Amos brings this up in "Goblet of Fire," Cedric is sure to remind his father that Harry falling was an accident. The Hufflepuff thinks his size doesn't necessarily make him a better seeker, even though his father does.
Cedric shared a crush with Harry
In "Goblet of Fire," audiences get a glimpse into Harry's love life. Until this point, the only inkling of anything romantic in Harry's direction had been Ginny Weasley's Valentine's Day poem in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets." In the fourth book, we see Harry experience his first crush on Ravenclaw student Cho Chang. Cho is a year ahead of Harry at Hogwarts and also plays the seeker on her House Quidditch team.
Harry asks Cho to the Yule Ball, only to be declined because she has already agreed to go with someone else, and that person is Cedric Diggory. Cedric and Cho continue to date until his death. Like many couples at Hogwarts, they go to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop for Valentine's Day, and Cho is even the person Cedric has to save from the Black Lake in the second task of the tournament. In that task, each champion has to save the person they'll "sorely miss," or the one that means the most to them, showing how much he cares about her.
The following school year, Cho struggles as she comes to terms with Cedric's death and her new feelings for Harry. While Harry is open to connecting with her, she wants to spend their time together discussing Cedric. It's clear that he meant something to Cho, as she seems to struggle with guilt over having feelings for Harry so soon.
He had leadership positions at Hogwarts
As an upperclassman at Hogwarts, Cedric isn't just a Triwizard Tournament champion. When he is introduced before a Quidditch match in the "Prisoner of Azkaban" book, readers find out that he's not just a seeker: he's the captain of the team, as selected by Professor Pomona Sprout. As team captain, Cedric is responsible for planning their techniques and strategies, holding tryouts at the start of the term to fill vacant positions, and leading the team to victory. He could also call time-outs and take other necessary measures during a match.
Cedric isn't just the captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. He's a prefect. Each Hogwarts House has one female and one male prefect from their fifth, sixth, and seventh-year students. Prefects serve in the position until they graduate from Hogwarts at the end of their seventh year. They would patrol corridors and could take away House points from fellow students breaking rules.
As a perk for taking on extra responsibilities in addition to their schoolwork, prefects and Quidditch captains have access to a special bathroom. It has a large tub, depicted as a small pool in the films, with a variety of fancy taps that give them a private and luxurious bath experience.
He did well in the Triwizard Tournament
Cedric Diggory is selected as the Hogwarts champion because the goblet of fire believes he has what it takes to complete the tasks of the tournament. In previous years, the Triwizard Tournament has been open to any student. However, due to horrible accidents in the past, the Ministry of Magic decides that only those of age, or students at least seventeen years old, can enter. Of the seventeen-year-olds at Hogwarts, Cedric is chosen as the "most worthy" to compete for Hogwarts.
During the first task, Cedric uses advanced Transfiguration to turn a rock into a dog, giving the dragon he's facing something else to go after. While the Hufflepuff is able to snag the golden egg, the dragon did direct its flames toward him, burning the side of his face. In the second task, Cedric aptly uses the bubble-head Charm and is the first to return from the Black Lake. He receives first place in the task, scoring 47 out of 50 possible points. This ties him for first place with Harry going into the third task, which allows them to enter the maze first. Despite the difficulties Cedric faces in the maze, he makes it to the Triwizard Cup before the other champions with Harry.
His performance in each task is consistently excellent, putting the odds in his favor and giving him more time in the final task. This extra time did work in his favor, helping him get to the cup first.
Though he had some help for the Second Task
Cedric receives a heads-up from Harry that the first task involves dragons. To return the favor, Cedric tells Harry to open the golden egg underwater. He even offers the Prefect's bathroom for Harry to use. Opening the egg underwater is how you can hear the song, which reveals what to expect from the next task.
However, Cedric doesn't figure that out on his own. In the aftermath of Harry returning from the graveyard with Cedric's body, he is taken into the castle by Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, an Auror who is acting as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for the year. "Who told Cedric to open it underwater? I did. I trusted that he would pass the information on to you," Moody tells Harry. "I was sure Cedric would want to repay you for telling him about the dragons, and so he did." In this conversation, Moody admits to helping Harry in some way in every task of the tournament.
Moody uses Cedric's loyalty against him to manipulate him into passing necessary information to Harry. Why did he need to use Cedric as a pawn? Well, it isn't actually Moody — it's death eater Barty Crouch Jr. using a polyjuice potion to disguise himself as Moody.
He was almost brought back to life
When "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" debuted in 2016, fans were excited because the play offered a glimpse into the life of Harry's son Albus Severus. What they may not have been expecting was to travel through time repeatedly, meet Voldemort's daughter, and see alternate timelines.
In the first act of the play, Amos hears a rumor that the Ministry took a Time-Turner prototype from Theodore Nott. The Ministry of Magic's supply of Time-Turners was destroyed during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," but apparently there are wizards trying to build new ones. Amos begs Harry to go back in time and save his son, but Harry declines, telling the old man that he knows they can't play with time.
Albus Severus hears this conversation, and after speaking with Scorpius — Draco Malfoy's son — they decide to visit Amos and bring Cedric back. Their efforts create several changes in time. When they try to save him by means of altering the first task, it results in Hermione and Ron never marrying. When they reunite and try to change the outcome of the second task, they create a future where Cedric is a Death Eater and Harry dies at the hands of Voldemort.
With the help of their parents, they correct history and prevent Voldemort from taking over the wizarding world — even though it means they can't save Cedric.
How Robert Pattinson was cast as Cedric
In an interview with GQ, Pattinson claims he had "sort of fallen into" his role as Cedric in "Goblet of Fire." However, there is a bit more to the story than just luck. His first film role was set to be in the 2004 historical drama "Vanity Fair" as Reese Witherspoon's character Rebecca Sharp Crawley's son, but his scenes were cut in post-production. "Basically I went to the screening and no one had informed me that I was cut," Pattinson told W Magazine in 2017. "And they got on to my bit and it was just a totally alternate ending."
His scenes being cut is what led to his audition for the trusty team captain. "The casting director ... she felt so guilty that no one had informed me that she basically gave me a first run at the part in Harry Potter," the actor continued. Having the first shot at the character worked out, since "Goblet of Fire" became his first major film and an iconic character he is still remembered for today.
Pattinson was terrified to play Cedric
Being in "Harry Potter" was vastly different from anything else the actor had filmed up to that point in his career. His work on "Vanity Fair" hadn't quite prepared him for everything he encountered on the "Potter" set. "I mean, it was so terrifying," Pattinson told GQ. "I remember the first scene I ever shot on [the film] was in the magical maze at the end and I'd never done anything with special effects and stunts, and it was a big deal at the time. It felt very, very intimidating." In the film, the maze features a variety of creatures and obstacles, including plants trying to pull Cedric into the hedges, all while utilizing a wand.
To try and prepare himself for these scenes, he utilized information he read in a method acting book. "The only thing I really got out of that was just beating yourself up before every single scene," Pattinson detailed. "That was basically my only concept of how to prepare for a scene." This entailed the actor pulling at his clothes and trying to psyche himself up, but usually just resulted in him sweating off his makeup and fake wounds. "And all of the prosthetics would melt off my face," the actor shared in the interview. "I'd have to have all my makeup done again."
Pattinson had the idea for Cedric's on-screen entrance
Cedric has one of the more memorable on-screen entrances, with the teen jumping down from a tree in front of Arthur Weasley (Mark Williams) as his father Amos Diggory introduces him to the group (and the audience). "It was definitely my concept to jump out of the tree at the beginning," he shared with GQ. The entrance sets the stage for what audiences will see from the character in "Goblet of Fire."
Pattinson notes that he had an affinity for jumping from trees at that time, as he also suggested the same type of scene entrance for his character Edward Cullen in "Twilight" as well. In that case, it isn't the first time viewers see Edward, but it is during a pivotal scene where Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) admits she knows he is a vampire, and the dynamic between them changes forever. "For some reason, I always have the suggestion to be like, why doesn't he just appear just like jumping out of a tree," he continued in the interview.
Playing Cedric helped Pattinson snag his role in Twilight
While it may not seem like it, playing Cedric Diggory set Pattinson up with his breakthrough role. On an episode of the podcast "The Big Hit Show," "Twilight" director Catherine Hardwicke discussed the casting process for Edward Cullen, the vampire Bella falls in love with. While Kristen had been cast as the leading lady, there was a bit of difficulty to cast the leading vampire. "Tons of good looking guys came in," Hardwicke explains. "They looked like you could believe they were real people. And I wanted somebody that didn't seem like a real person."
Erik Feig, a producer who helped Summit Entertainment secure the rights to the film, had an image in mind. "I remember like saying, "It's someone Byronic. It's someone like British, I'm telling you, it's like someone who's on a bluff staring off into the distance, looking romantic," he shares. This caused him and an executive from Summit to look at the cast of "Harry Potter."
Feig pointed out Pattinson's headshot, asking who he was and if he had read for them. After some communication, Pattinson sent in an audition tape. This led him to fly out to Hardwicke's home and do a chemistry audition with Stewart, which secured him the role. With the author of the book series, Stephenie Meyer, signing off, Pattinson was the new face of Edward Cullen, all thanks to his "Potter" headshot.