Salt Lake Comic Con FanX 2015 – Tom Felton Panel

Friday January 30th at 3:00pm 2500 people filed into the South Ballroom at the Salt Lake Comic Con Fan Xperience 2015. They were there to participate in the panel featuring Tom Felton, better known to most as Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter movies.

Tom Felton comes across as a really great guy. When asked why he always seems to play evil or unliked characters he jokingly said he that is how he really is, and he just acts when he isn’t on screen.

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The following questions were answered during the panel. While they were not personally asked by me, they lined up with the questions asked by members in the meta post.

How do you really feel about being sorted into Gryffindor (on the Pottermore website)?

I called JK up and said it must have been a glitch in the system. But she said I was sorted into Gryffindor because that is what I am.

Earlier in the day while taking photos with fans, a certain fan asked him to wear a Gryffindor scarf since that was his house. Relating this in the panel he said:

I very begrudingly wore a Gryffindor scarf for a photo op.

His general sentiment was that he would have preferred Slytherin.

Do you agree with JKR’s view expressed in interviews, that all the girls who are deeply attracted to Draco (as opposed to the actor) are way wrong and shouldn’t be?

Although he does have some redeeming qualities in the later films, he is still a slimy git.

How much input into the personality of your character did you have from JKR?

I picked her brain over the years to try and better understand his character.

In light of Draco Malfoy’s early characterization as a one-dimensional bully, if you’ve read J.K. Rowling’s updated information about Draco, what are your thoughts on Draco’s development into an almost reclusive figure, who eschews his parents’ Muggle-hating values, collects Dark Arts [artifacts], and develops a fascination with Alchemy? As Draco’s actor, does this surprise you?

I really enjoyed the background coming out on Pottermore.

I realized he really didn’t fit into the normal Malfoy family. So later in his life he got to reinvent what it meant to be a Malfoy.

From here are some questions which I thought were interesting or otherwise noteworthy.

In a special feature on Chamber of Secrets you mentioned being Draco hasn’t helped you get girls. How was that changed now that the films are done?

I actually met my girlfriend of 7 years in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. She was an extra, a Gryffindor (laughter from the crowd) At the end of the last film, when you see me with a wife and son, Jade got to play my wife. That is not really my son.

In case this isn’t clear, Jade, his girlfriend of 7 years whom he met on the set, played his wife in the epilogue scene where Harry sees Draco with his wife and son.

What are some of your favorite moments from being on the Harry Potter set all those years?

The robes they had us wear had really deep pockets. So I used to stuff candy and sodas and Redbulls in there. By the end of the day I’d get to wardrobe and he would find all this chocolate in the pockets. Eventually they decided to sew up the pockets on all the robes, probably because of me.

I actually used to give Redbull to ten-year-olds. I got told off on that too.

Michael Gambon hid cigarettes in his beard.

What is your favorite film from the series?

When I was a kid it was Chamber of Secrets. Now I would say Half-Blood Prince is my favorite.

What did you do to first prepare for the role for Draco?

I don’t have anything close to direct quotes, but I’ll relate the story he told. When he went to audition he hadn’t read any of the books. It was an open audition so there were hundreds of kids there. Chris Columbus (director) was walking down the line asking kids what their favorite part of the books were. It wasn’t until Chris asking the boy next to him that he realized he didn’t have an answer. And he heard the boy say how great is was going to be to see Gringotts.

So when Chris turned to me I said something like: “Those Gringotts, definitely. I can’t wait to see them fly. I love me some Gringotts.” He just looked at me, and I think he decided I would make a good Draco.

When asked about current or future projects Tom Felton said that he has a documentary coming out about super fans and conventions. He said it would air on the BBC in April of 2015, and hopefully in the United States sometime after that.

Related:

Harry Potter Movie Marathon Highlights

The (new) Star Wars Canon guide

Over the years, there have been 1366 Star Wars tagged questions on SFF:SE. These have attracted some great answers from a wide variety of sources including the Star Wars films, comics, games, TV shows, novels, art-books and RPGs. The number one response asked in comments is always “how canon is that source?“.

With the purchase of LucasFilm by Disney there have been some recent changes to the way in which Star Wars licensed properties are managed. I thought that now would be a good time to provide the definitive guide (I wish) to the New Star Wars Canon.


Canonicity in the Star Wars universe is, as of April 2014 determined by a working group comprised of representatives of Disney and LucasFilm known as the Lucasfilm Story Group.

The primary change made is that the old canon system (G-Canon, T-Canon, etc) has been nuked from orbit and only the original six feature films (the Original Trilogy and the Prequel trilogy), Clone Wars TV show, Clone Wars film and Star Wars : Rebels TV shows are considered to be part of the official Star Wars film canon.

All other properties (with a few small exceptions) are now lumped together under a single banner known as Star Wars : Legends. Those exceptions seem to include the film’s novelisations (where they elaborate on things seen on screen), the official StarWars.com Data Bank (which replaces the old Data Bank website) and elements of the Jedi Path Manual.

“While Lucasfilm always strived to keep the stories created for the EU consistent with our film and television content as well as internally consistent, Lucas always made it clear that he was not beholden to the EU. He set the films he created as the canon. This includes the six Star Wars episodes, and the many hours of content he developed and produced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. These stories are the immovable objects of Star Wars history, the characters and events to which all other tales must align.”
LucasFilm Statement – Apr 2014

Those other film and TV properties that were originally deemed to be G-Canon and T-Canon (the Star Wars Radio Dramatisations, Star Wars Holiday Special, Ewoks films, Star Wars : DroidsTV show and Star Wars: Ewoks TV show) are now all considered to be Legends properties.


Moving forward, all future properties (films, books, comics and games) will be licensed and fully compliant with the Star Wars Story Group’s rules regarding canon status, unless explicitly stated. Excluding the exceptions listed above, the full list of canon works (past, present and near future) now stands as follows:

  • (Film) Episode I: The Phantom Menace (and the novelisation by Terry Brooks)

  • (Film) Episode II: Attack of the Clones (and the novelisation by R. A. Salvatore)

  • (Film) The Clone Wars (and the novelisation by Karen Traviss)

  • (TV Show) The Clone Wars: Season 1-5

  • (TV Show) The Clone Wars: The Lost Missions

  • (Comic) Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir by Jeremy Barlow

  • (Novel) Dark Disciple by Christie Golden (not yet released)

  • (Comic) Kanan: The Last Padawan by Greg Weisman (not yet released)

  • (Film) Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (and the novelisation by Matthew W. Stover)

  • (Novel) Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp (not yet released)

  • (Novel) Tarkin by James Luceno

  • (Novel) A New Dawn by John Jackson Miller

  • (Novel) Servants of the Empire: Edge of the Galaxy by Jason C. Fry

  • (Novel) Ezra’s Gamble by Ryder Windham

  • (TV Show) Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion

  • (TV Show) Star Wars Rebels: Season 1

  • (Film) Episode IV: A New Hope (and the novelisation by Alan Dean Foster)

  • (Comic) Star Wars by Jason Aaron

  • (Comic) Star Wars: Darth Vader by Kieron Gillen (not yet released)

  • (Comic) Star Wars: Princess Leia by Mark Waid (not yet released)

  • (Short Story) One Thousand Levels Down Alexander Freed

  • (Novel) Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne (not yet released)

  • (Film) Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (and the novelisation by Donald F. Glut)

  • (Film) Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (and the novelisation by James Kahn)

  • (Short Story) Blade Squadron by David J. Williams

  • (Film) Episode VII: The Force Awakens (and the novelisation). (not yet released)

Original answer to the question How is canonicity of derivative works determined for Star Wars?

Agent Carter – Pilot Episode

This mini-series begins with some of the final scenes from Captain America: The First Avenger. With Steve Rogers piloting the large ship into the ocean and Peggy Carter on the radio.

The year is 1946, and Peggy Carter is still heartbroken over the loss. She lives in a small single room apartment which she shares with another girl. The apartment only has one bed, which they apparently share. Not in a scandalous kind of way, but rather in a way that depicts real life living in New York. She works for the telephone company, but when she arrives is led into a secret area which is the base of operations for the Strategic Scientific Reserve.

Agent Carter

Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) is a strong willed, independent woman in a (presumably) man’s job, where the men don’t really want her around. She is frequently asked to fetch coffee, file reports, answer the phones, and otherwise be a glorified secretary who happens to carry a gun.

Dominic Cooper reprises his role as the young Howard Stark. It seems a number of his more dangerous inventions have suddenly turned up on the black market and are being sold to enemies of the United States. He is subject to congressional hearings on the matter and no doubt is being investigated by the real FBI, but SSR makes finding him and his inventions a top priority. Stark seeks the help of Agent Carter to clear his name and find his inventions. Agent Carter must do this behind her superiors’ backs, because Stark is assumed guilty until proven innocent, and she is too much of a dame for important work. Stark lends her the assistance of his butler and confidant Edwin Jarvis.

Agent Carter is picking up right where Captain America ended (if you don’t watch the final scene where he is in modern day New York). Captain America the person is still a part of 1940s pop-culture. He has a radio program, to which poor Peggy (and the watching audience) must hear everywhere she goes. He’s still being mentioned in the newspaper, and no doubt his famous trading cards are in circulation.

I’m not exactly sure what the SSR’s mission is now that the war is over. Where as before they were a function of the military, with Colonel Chester Phillips acting as the leader, now it appears to just be some g-men bureaucrats. Furthermore, I’m not sure what jurisdiction the SSR has. Apparently they can interrogate people and do company wide inspections personnel.

The Marvel Movie Wiki has this to say:

The S.S.R. continued for a short time after the war, taking on cases such as the Zodiac, but was disbanded in 1946 and its former membership absorbed into a new agency, S.H.I.E.L.D.

Given that Agent Carter takes place in 1946, and a short run mini-series with 8 episodes, I’m guessing this series will end with the creation of S.H.I.E.L.D. Last night was a 2 hour premiere, with two 1 hour episodes back to back, which I guess means there will only be 6 more airings.

Highlights from 2014 – 4th Quarter

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