India, Aug. 12 -- It seems Nicholas Hoult is collecting iconic villains like Infinity Stones. After playing Lex Luthor in James Gunn's Superman, the actor has now been tapped to play Gilderoy Lockhart in the upcoming Harry Potter series. The character appears in the second Harry Potter book, which will be adapted in the show's planned second season.

Deadline reported that Nicholas, 36, has been finalised to play the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher in the second season of HBO's massive Harry Potter series. The character was played by Kenneth Branagh in the film series, appearing in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002). In the novel, Gilderoy Lockhart is a notoriously vain, boastful and fame-obsessed wizard who is hired by ...