Harry Potter’s parents have been cast in the first season of the upcoming TV series and the character of Charlie Weasley has been confirmed for his screen debut.

Jasper Talbot will play James Potter and Hannah Chinn will play his wife Lily in the HBO adaptation of the children’s fantasy novels by JK Rowling.

Their characters die before the main story begins, murdered at the hands of evil wizard Lord Voldemort, with Lily sacrificing her life to protect their infant son – the title character.

The night led to the famous lightning-shaped scar on Harry’s forehead and set the events of Rowling’s novels in motion.

James and Lily appear in the original Harry Potter films, including in flashbacks, but it is not yet known how prominent their roles will be in the new series.

Charlie Weasley is a former Hogwarts student who works with dragons in Romania and was absent from the original film adaptations.

He is mentioned in the novels with rare appearances throughout as he is the brother of one of the three main characters – Ron Weasley.

The new cast members were revealed in a post to the HBO Max Instagram on Monday, which read: “The magical family is growing.”

The show aims to be a faithful adaptation of Rowling’s novels while providing a wider insight into the magical wizarding world beyond that depicted in the hit film franchise, which ran from 2001 to 2011.

The three main characters – young wizards Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger – are played by Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout and Arabella Stanton.

The first season of the HBO show will launch this Christmas and has been adapted from Rowling’s first novel, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone.