How a Harry Potter Villain Became China’s Unexpected Lunar New Year Mascot
It’s no secret that the Harry Potter franchise is one of the most popular and successful of all time, but we never expected one of its most nefarious characters to end up being the poster boy for the Chinese Lunar New Year.
Daniel Radcliffe and the titular hero he played spent a decade and eight movies fighting off Lord Voldemort and his wizarding cronies. From Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone right through to the Deathly Hallows two-parter, the fabled Boy Who Lived was someone we could all root for.
Over in China, however, it seems one of Potter’s most troublesome nemeses has finally been forgiven for all the problems he caused. In fact, he’s very likely to get a whole year in the spotlight, and here’s why.
Why Draco Malfoy Is a Big Deal in China This Year
On February 17, China will welcome in a new year. The Year of the Horse is upon us, but it’s Draco Malfoy who is being put forward as the symbol of this joyous celebration.
Turns out, the name Malfoy roughly translates to “Ma Er Fu” in Mandarin. “Ma” means horse, which already helps to align the fictional wizard with the impending occasion. Still, when you consider that “Fu” translates to “good fortune”, it becomes abundantly clear why Chinese citizens are adorning their walls with pictures of the blonde bully.
If there’s even a small chance that these shrines to Malfoy are going to bring luck in the Year of the Horse, then why not hail the Slytherin prince? It’s even more fitting that we are saying goodbye to the Year of the Snake. The Hogwarts sorting hat would have a field day with the way this has all aligned.
Folks in China are really going all in on this trend ahead of the Lunar New Year, too. Red posters (also known as fai chun) with celebratory phrases are not unusual, but these have now been reworked with a young Tom Felton’s face.
Even the actor himself has noticed the craze. He recently took to Instagram to reshare a photo he spotted of a huge electronic banner in a shopping mall that had Malfoy’s smug grin staring back at him.
The Harry Potter Movies Made a Killing at the Chinese Box Office
This may seem unusual, but we really shouldn’t be surprised, given how popular the Harry Potter movies are in China.
According to the Chinese publishing company behind the translated versions of the books, more than 10 million copies of the series were sold even before the final instalment was released in 2007.
The movies have done well over there, too. In 2020, a re-release of the first film raked in a massive $27.6 million. In 2024, a marathon of all eight films added another $42.64 million to the franchise’s global box office figures.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 made waves when it was first released in China, earning a record-breaking $26.5 million in its initial run in 2011. That record may have been snatched away from the fantasy film since then, but clearly, the cultural impact of the Wizarding World has not faded at all – not for Draco Malfoy, at least.
