Stranger Things Star Jamie Campbell Bower Blew His Harry Potter Audition With A Dirty Joke

Jamie Campbell Bower is a man of many talents, but he's not particularly good at telling jokes. Since "Stranger Things" season 4 was released on Netflix, Jamie Campbell Bower has been wildly popular for his role as Vecna, the towering, humanoid-looking villain of the sci-fi series. Not many people know that Bower has been an internet secret for much longer — the actor's stint in multiple adaptations of popular YA novels has attracted our attention for quite some time. Bower finally got his due with the "Stranger Things" role that displayed his raw talent as a performer and a voice artist, and now he's getting candid about one of his worst audition experiences.

"The Mortal Instruments" star auditioned for a role in "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," the first film set in the billion-dollar-making fantasy adventure franchise. Bower met with director Chris Columbus (who helmed the first two "Harry Potter" films) for his audition and made a "dirty" joke that got him kicked out of the movie before he had a chance to show them his acting range.

Bower shared an inappropriate Christmas joke during his "Harry Potter" audition in London, the actor revealed during an episode of the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast hosted by Josh Horowitz. The silence in the room that followed confirmed the actor had messed up, and he knew he would lose out on the role.

" ... I had just heard this joke about a fairy, like, the reason why the fairy sits on top of the Christmas tree, and it's a really, like, dirty joke, because it's about the Christmas tree up somebody's bottom. And I told this joke in the audition, and there was again, this sort of, like... air of just like silence after I said it. And I was like, 'Well... f**ked that up.'"

Bower must've been disappointed at his surprising candidness during the audition, but despite how Chris Columbus must have reacted at the time, the actor eventually joined the "Harry Potter" franchise. Years later, Bower acquired a role in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1," starring as a younger version of dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald. The performer reprised his role in the franchise's spin-off sequel, "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."

The actor is expected to be seen making a return to "Stranger Things" during its concluding fifth season. The villain's temporary defeat has only made him angrier, and he will be back for blood soon. This time, Vecna won't be making any mistakes. It'll be a while until we see the final season, though, since it is currently in the early stages of development.