Was Harry Potter's Hagrid A Death Eater? A Bonkers Reddit Theory Explained

"Harry Potter" is stocked chock full of characters who aren't quite what they seem. Severus Snape (Alan Rickman in the films) seems like a really mean teacher — and to be blunt, he is — but it also turns out he was working to keep Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) safe. Sirius Black, who's introduced in the third book and film (and played by Gary Oldman), is, at face value, a magical serial killer (and not in a fun way), but it turns out he was framed for murder by a rat-man. Rubeus Hagrid — played by the late Robbie Coltrane — seems pretty great at face value, though, as a gentle half-giant who immediately takes Harry under his wing when the Boy Who Lived discovers he's not just a wizard, but an incredibly famous one.

So why do some fans think Hagrid might have been a Death Eater working for Voldemort (played in the films by Ralph Fiennes)? One wildly popular fan theory posits that Hagrid, a father figure to Harry and one of the franchise's most beloved characters, pulled a reverse Snape and was a bad guy all along. There's even an entire Google doc laying out the theory on this Reddit thread, "Hagrid is a Death Eater." 

Original poster u/Whoofph wrote in 2019, "I started a read-through of Harry Potter recently, and I was determined to pay close attention to Snape early on with interest to viewing his character through the lens of a double-agent. However, early on I noticed the strangest behavior coming from Hagrid instead which I had never noticed before. I started paying more attention to the actions, statements, and inconsistencies in Hagrid and realized almost every move taken somehow aided Voldemort."

How could Hagrid, a cuddly and kind man who cries at the drop of a hat and gifts his pet dragon a teddy bear, possibly be one of the series' most insidious and evil characters? As this theory points out, Hagrid is not only far more magically powerful than he lets on, but a lot of what he does actually works against Harry and his safety.

Starting with the first book, the theory takes an incredibly deep dive into Hagrid's every action — so here are just a few examples. Take the moment where, upon arriving at The Leaky Cauldron — the magical pub that houses the entrance to Diagon Alley — Hagrid specifically introduces Harry to Professor Quirrell, a Hogwarts professor who just so happens to have Lord Voldemort attached to the back of his head like a parasite. "While it may be a coincidence Quirrell happened to be at the Leaky Cauldron on this day, at this time, during Harry's impromptu visit, it is more likely a coordinated effort between Hagrid and Voldemort in order for Voldemort's servant to come meet with his target," the theory reads.

Shortly thereafter, Hagrid buys Harry a snowy white owl, whom the boy names Hedwig. Sweet, right? Not according to the theory: "Hagrid, always looking out for Voldemort's interest, specifically purchased Harry the most conspicuous owl we ever see, which would be easy to track and observe, which is all the more suspicious given that he did so right after returning to the last known whereabouts of Voldemort's other servant."

There are times throughout the "Harry Potter" books where Harry, in his internal monologue, does admit to himself that Hagrid hangs out with questionable creatures and characters. He harbors an illegal dragon egg, keeps a dangerous pet acromantula, and goes to bat for a hippogriff within the first three books — and that's to say nothing of his creation, the Blast-Ended Skrewts, which he uses in his post as the Care of Magical Creatures professor in "Goblet of Fire." u/Whoofph has some thoughts on this as well, pointing out that Hagrid had introduced Harry to all of the creatures within the final maze of the Triwizard Tournament, ensuring that he would make it through to the Triwizard Cup. As we all now know, the Triwizard Cup is a Portkey that leads Harry directly to Lord Voldemort and his return to human form... so perhaps Hagrid had a hand in all of that.

Beyond that, Hagrid would be unbelievably useful to Voldemort thanks to his post as a member of the Order of the Phoenix, a group ostensibly created to fight Dark forces — not support them. Hagrid's role in the Order puts him within close proximity of enemies Voldemort desperately wants to take down, including Albus Dumbledore (played by Michael Gambon), not to mention Harry himself. Hagrid might seem bumbling and inefficient most of the time, but he's also, as /Whoofph correctly notes, he's able to give a pig tail to a human boy with a broken wand, indicating that he's both savvy and powerful... and he's tucked away within the belly of the beast Voldemort most wants to destroy.

Perhaps the most convincing argument within u/Whoofph's entire opus, though, has to do with Voldemort's wand — and the Redditor thinks that Hagrid actually managed to save Voldemort's wand and return it to his alleged master years later. After noting that Voldemort has his wand back in his pocket when he returns at the end of "Goblet of Fire," u/Whoofph says, "There were only a few people present immediately after the Potter murders who could have taken Voldemort's wand: Hagrid arrived first, and collected Harry to deliver to Dumbledore and the Dursleys. Sirius arrived second. Hagrid references to Dumbledore in the first chapter of Book 1 that he arrived before the place was swarming with Muggles."

A decent point is made here, which is that though Sirius is apprehended at the ruined Potter house after Voldemort kills James and Lily (and tries to kill Harry), he's taken by the Ministry, who certainly would have confiscated Voldemort's wand. Similarly, if Voldemort had left it at the house, the Ministry would have taken it then too.

"This leaves Hagrid as the only possible person to have collected Voldemort's wand as Hagrid," u/Whoofph concludes. "Nobody else made it to the scene before the Muggles and the Ministry but those two. If Sirius, the Muggles, or the Ministry collected the wand, it would not have ended up in his robes at the graveyard – it would have been snapped in half. A Death Eater had to have obtained the wand prior to its confiscation and likely destruction, and Hagrid is the only available option."

The theory is, all things considered, not bad... but unfortunately, "Harry Potter" fans will likely have to grapple with the fact that Rubeus Hagrid isn't a Death Eater, and a lot of this is a coincidence, conjecture, or both. Hagrid could be hiding super-intelligence under his bumbling manner, but it simply feels like there are far too many instances where he could possibly slip up, revealing his status as a double agent and putting Voldemort in danger in the process. 

Beyond that, both Snape and Dumbledore know how to perform Legilimency, a form of magic where you can essentially read somebody's mind, so we'd have to accept the possibility that a man who's half-giant and hides his wand inside of a pink plastic umbrella is also one of the best Occlumens in the wizarding world. It's a genuinely fascinating theory, but it's probably not true. Hagrid fans, worry not; your giant guy is, more likely than not, still one of the good ones.

Also, let's be realistic; Joanne Rowling probably didn't think of this possibility, or we'd know Hagrid was a confirmed Death Eater by now. After all, she's not shy about telling us where wizards went to the bathroom before plumbing existed.