Draco Malfoy, the Harry Potter villain, has become an unlikely mascot for the Year of the Horse in China, thanks to a pun on his Mandarin name. The character's name is transliterated as “mǎ ěr fú”, where “mǎ” means horse and “fú” means fortune, creating an auspicious phrase for the new year.
The wordplay has sparked a wave of memes, fan art, and merchandise across Chinese social media. Images of Tom Felton, who played Malfoy, appear on red banners and posters, often riding cartoon horses or smiling from lunar new year decorations in shopping malls and offices.
Felton, 38, recently reprised his role in the Broadway production Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. He noticed the trend and reposted a photo of a banner featuring his face in a Chinese mall, with text reading “Magical awakening that attracts abundant wealth”.
The frenzy comes as millions prepare for the lunar new year, which begins later this month. Since the Chinese versions of J.K. Rowling's series launched in 2000, around 200 million copies have been sold in China, according to CGTN.
Last year, Warner Bros. Discovery announced plans to build a Harry Potter studio tour in Shanghai, spanning 53,000 square metres and expected to open in 2027. It will be larger than existing tours in London and Tokyo.
