You can only con God and get away with it as long as you're exciting. If you give him a show, he'll play along just to see whatever the hell you'll do next.
Philip Ranon Potter (b. 3 December) is a half-blood wizard of the Potter family, the only son of Nicodemus Potter and Lydia Newman, and the younger brother of Persia. When Philip and his sister were very young, their parents divorced and their mother remarried, giving them a stepfather and two stepbrothers, all of whom live in the Muggle world. The family still remain in contact, although the occasional get-together is always known to be rather awkward.
Upon attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Philip was Sorted into Hufflepuff House. He was in the same year as his first cousin Mallory, who in time became one of his best and closest friends.
"There was this book I used to read when I was younger, can't remember this name... but it's about this horklump, really tiny, everyone picks on it because it doesn't look like a real animal. So one day it eats a load of this magic grass, then it hid in the forest and became this great big beast that everyone had loads of respect for. And after my parents split, I'd get under the covers and I’d just read it over and over. And it made me think that when I came out, I didn’t want to be different. I just wanted what was outside to be different."
— Philip on his early childhood
Hogwarts years
First year
Second year
Third year
Fourth year
Fifth year
Sixth year
Seventh year
Later life
"Everyone loves him, but he's so nice that people are always taking advantage. I don't just want my own things and my own car — I want to be able to take care of him."
Philip: "You'll understand this one day, kid. You are everything I have to show for my life and I really do hate it when you get all stubborn like this, because I fucking love you too much. I'm an idiot, I know."
Elliot: "I love you too, dad."
— Philip showing his affection for his son
Brennan family
Quint family
Ida Karasu
Philip: "Ida... Ida, listen... you are a very understanding woman in everything but love."
Ida: "Shut up, Philip."
— Philip and Ida's relationship falls apart
Xanthas Jordan
Xanthas Jordan: "It must get old, cleaning up after everyone. Not even a disgrace to the name of wizard but a servant as well."
Philip: "I would rather be a servant until the day I die than risk ever being a bad father to my son."
— Philip righteously defends his reputation in adulthood
Etymology
The name Philip is a Greek baby name, meaning "lover of horses". Famous Philips include King Philip of Macedon, who was the father of Alexander the Great, and Philip, one of Christ's apostles in the Bible.
The name Ranon is a Hebrew baby name and variation of the name Rani, meaning "joyful". This may allude to Philip's jovial and optimistic nature.
Potter is a very common surname of English origin. It traditionally refers to the occupation of making pottery. Beatrix Potter was a well-known English children's author. Potter's Field is the name for a burial ground for the unknown or unclaimed dead, particularly soldiers and orphans; the Potter family had many members that fit that description. The Potter Box is a model for making ethical decisions developed at Harvard University.
Quotes
Philip: You'd think beauty is in a classroom or a textbook, but it's not. That's not what it's about. This right here. This is beautiful. All of this. This is all we need.
Ida: But you can't just go around having fun all the time. You have to be serious. Philip: I am serious. I am deathly serious. Ida: About what? Philip: About... not being serious!
Philip: Do you remember colouring-in books? I bloody hate them. If I'm going to do a picture of a dragon, I don't want someone else telling me what it should look like, know what I mean?
Aries: Hey, Pip, I need you for a sec. Are you alone? Philip: Almost always, yeah.
Philip: Every bloody time... buy us some herbs, Philip... oh, yes sir... shove Babbling Beverage down the loudspeakers, Philip... oh, right away... come help me save a fourth-year from a fire-breathing dragon, Philip... oh, could I? And what have we learned, Philip? Your family... are a bunch of tossers.
Philip: Sometimes you have to move on without certain people, and if they're meant to be in your life, you just have to trust they'll catch up.
Adil: He looks hammered. Ida: He usually is. Philip: Did someone say hammered? Am I hammered? Let's see... if hammered equals A, and something else equals B... the answer definitely is not B.
Urya: It's silly, really. It's really silly. Philip: No, if you like it, then it isn't silly.
Philip: Compared to others, I haven't had that many hardships... not really. Things have happened, yeah, but things always happen. The real challenge of my life, the real hardship, is me. It's always been me. As long as I can remember, I've never not been afraid. Afraid of failure, letting people down, hurting people, getting hurt, just being shit overall. I thought if I focused on other things... if I couldn't even feel it, well, then no harm would come to me. I made a mistake. I shut out everything, the good and the bad, until there was nothing. It's fine to just live in the now but the best thing about now is that there's another one tomorrow. And I'm gonna start making them count.
Philip: Look, I was perfectly happy killing myself, right, but then you asked me to try… and for the first time in my life it felt like someone actually gave a shit. And that person was worth trying for. And now I’d... I’d fucking make the world record biggest pumpkin pasty if you asked me to. I’d kick old witches in the shins. I’d fill rivers with pumpkin juice.
Philip: Thing is, Elliot, there's no point in arguing with someone who doesn't have an open mind. People with a close minded mentality never look at all the variables presented, only the ones that benefit them.
Philip: I want you to promise me something, Jamie. If you love someone, tell them. Even if you're scared it's not the right thing to do. Even if you're scared it will cause problems. Even if you're scared it will completely burn your life to the ground. You say it. You say it loud. And you go from there. Jamie: Why are you telling me this? Philip: Elliot's always been very confident in who he is, what he wants. I like to think that he got it from me, but I think he does that all on his own. He has this way of making things seem like they're all alright, sometimes. Like he has it all under control. And sometimes he's right. It's not always going to seem so difficult.
Professor Helmick: Frankly, Mr. Potter, your grandson's behaviour has been among the most egregious I've seen at this school, and I've been here a long time. He terrorizes these students to the point that they move through my halls in fear. School should not be a palace of terror. It should be a temple of learning. If children do not feel safe, how can they learn? Boy: They can't. Professor Helmick: The only way to get through to Carl is have him face the truth of what he's done and let him absorb it in a meaningful way. Do that, okay? He can't just do it. He needs to actively engage. Got any suggestions?Parent: He should apologize to my kid and every other kid here. Individually. Like he means it. Philip: Oh, don't. Bullying is a vital part of every ecosystem. It teaches children resilience. The world is a rough place. Bullying is like getting inoculated. It's a vaccine. And you, you should be learning to learn to stay away from people like my grandson. That's what you learn when you get punched in the face by a bully. How do you think Albus Dumbledore turned out so great? Bullies. And I guarantee Junior here will be thriving when he's one hundred and ten all because he got bullied today. You're welcome.
Notes
Trivia
Paul Bettany is the husband of Jennifer Connelly, who plays an adult Lily Leander.
