william frederic eddington

"I never really cared much for Draco, I always thought he was a crybaby and a bully. In that order, in fact. When I first auditioned, I was angling for Ron. He was always my favourite, I always thought I'd be friends with Ron before any of the others. He was the one I felt most similar to, and not just because of the way we looked or the sort of families we both came from..." And it was true. The character of Draco Malfoy was often described as being an elitist, bigoted, snobby, cowardly, vicious young boy who was brought up by his Death Eater parents to believe that only "pure blood" wizards were worth acceptance and acknowledgement and that, most importantly, he was the very center of the universe. Draco was a self-centered only child, living in the lap of luxury, exhibiting alarming levels of spiteful arrogance and blind intolerance. Capitalising off of his fearsome family history as well as his own quickly established reputation as the leader of a house already characterised by a proclivity for dark magic and treachery. Virtually every aspect of the iconic young wizard screamed of a villain in the making.

But as a young boy, William Eddington could not have felt any further removed from the platinum blonde Slytherin. He couldn't possibly find any way for him to detest the his fictitious magical counterpart any more than he already did. Because in Will's mind he was clearly on the absolute opposite side of the spectrum from Draco, keeping company with bona fide heroes like Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom, and the entire Weasley family.

Where Draco was the product of his own parent's elitist upbringing and scorned Death Eater mentality, another sneering socialite in a long line of those before him, William is regarded as somewhat of a pioneer in the Eddington family. His parents, Sylvia and Bill Eddington, are scholars in every sense of the word, always placing an immense emphasis on education and higher learning, one of their greatest passions in life. To call them bookworms would perhaps be a disservice due to the negative connotations, but they were lovers of knowledge without any shadow of a doubt. Neither of them could ever deny the sense of discomfort and awkwardness they'd commonly experience whenever thrown into the midst of bustling, high-maintenance, high-pressure social situations. They were the sort to enjoy quiet, peaceful interactions and intellectually stimulating debates and discussions. And yet, here was their eldest son William, bursting into the kitchen after school one afternoon to announce that he was going to be Ronald Weasley. His parents were at first hesitant at the idea of letting him go to the auditions, concerned that their enthusiastic young son didn't fully understand what sort of life he'd possibly be getting himself into and the crushing level of rejection and disappointment he was inevitably going to experience in the process. After all, what twelve year old would understand the magnitude of such a choice? But William was deadset on having his way, come hell or high water. He was going to be Ronald Weasley, just wait and see.

Granted, history took a slightly different course and after auditioning for multiple characters from the beloved novels - Ron, Harry, and Neville being some of the most prominent - William was shocked to discover that he had been handpicked to bring Draco Malfoy to life on the big screen. At first, William was utterly horrified and overwhelmingly distraught at such news. What had he done wrong to deserve such an outcome as this?! His hero, Ron Weasley, would never in a million years befriend the likes of a Malfoy and that had to mean that the same treatment would be extended to the freckle-faced young boy set to play such an evil prat as well (it would be years and years until Will would think of himself as an actual, honest-to-god actor. For quite some time he could only think of himself as "the boy who played Malfoy"). But all it took was a tearful, sniffling heart-to-heart with his concerned parental unit and quite a bit of his fear and trepidation was put to rest. His anxiety was still present - alas, it always would be - but his parents explained to him that their son William would always be their beloved William, and, as for that character named Draco? Well, the lovely Ms. Rowling had entrusted Will with a wonderful opportunity to make the little Malfoy boy his very own. Now that was the sort of thing he liked the sound of. And sure enough, that's exactly what William went off and did. For over a decade now, it's become a rather normal occurrence for impassioned Potter fans (some love him, some hate him, some seem frightened by him) to approach him as if he was indeed a young wizard, calling him Malfoy or Draco, rambling at him about various plot points or transgressions his fictional counterpart had played part in. Not everyone seemed able to realize that William and Draco were two entirely different creatures. At the end of the day, however, as long as Will and those closest to him are able to make the distinction, he isn't all that bothered by the rest.

Where Draco was a textbook example of a bigoted snob, William was anything but. Even from the very start he'd been a charming and amiable young boy, befriending anyone and everyone who would allow him to do so. He liked people and more importantly, he could tell that others seemed to like him as well. People made him feel good, being liked by people made him feel even better. Someone's background couldn't be of any less importance to a boy like William, if they enjoyed his company it was practically guaranteed that he'd enjoy their's as well. William was a social being, a characteristic that has not only stuck with him but has flourished remarkably over the years. Now, that penchant for social situations has manifested itself into devastatingly attractive mixture of charm, flirtation, and persuasiveness. Despite his slimeball alter ego, people (women especially) have often found themselves utterly enchanted with the stylish young man, a fact which Will has frequently worked to his advantage while growing into adulthood. Will is frequently being described as being stoic, reserved, end even enigmatic at times which is why a well-timed grin or a low, authentic chuckle of amusement have easily worked their way into his charming arsenal of social weaponry. He's admittedly a womanizer and even a bit of a cad if he's being entirely honest, but he likes to think that he conducts himself with the sort of dignity and propriety befitting a young man of his elevated station in the entertainment industry. He enjoys his fun, his women, his liquor, and many more things that shall not be enumerated here. But he also knows the immense value of discretion and decency, two virtues that have served him and his cast mates quite well throughout their formative years.

And last but most certainly not least, where Draco had essentially been a frightened child masquerading as a dangerous, destructive Death Eater in the making, William has always made it a top priority to take care of those people he loves most dearly. Even if he perhaps finds himself unable to express that love as adequately and as articulately as he would like. Working on the Harry Potter films for as long as William has (he's one of only 14 cast members to appear in all 8 films) instilled within him a profound appreciation for teamwork and togetherness. He regards each and every member of the Harry Potter cast as an inextricable, invaluable member of his life now. While Will may have played an integral role in shaping the character of Draco Malfoy, all those who truly know him know that even more so, the cast and crew of this stunning, all-encompassing phenomena shaped him in more ways than anyone could every say. And now more than ever, with the true end of the Potter era finally upon them, William has been struggling desperately to understand the role each member of his beloved cast and crew has played within his life thus far. No matter how many years may pass by or how many changes William will go through from this point forward, he knows with complete and total certainty that Harry Potter will always be a part of his life and the man he is today. Until the very end.