There was no doubt that Robin Williams had the star power and range to take on any role, but when it came to Hagrid, director Chris Columbus had to turn him down. The reason? All the main characters in "Harry Potter" had to be played by British actors. "It was a British-only edict, and once [Columbus] said no to Robin, he wasn't going to say yes to anybody else, that's for sure," Hirshenson explained (via Huffington Post).
Williams was believed to be referencing the role of Hagrid in a 2001 interview with The New York Post where he talked about roles he wanted, but didn't get. "There were a couple of parts I would have wanted to play, but there was a ban on [using] American actors," he said (via The Guardian).
The role of Hagrid, of course, went to actor Robbie Coltrane (per IMDb). Coltrane would portray the character in all eight "Harry Potter" films over the following decade.
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