Draco Malfoy Becomes an Unlikely Lunar New Year Icon

Draco Malfoy may have sneered his way through Hogwarts, but in China, he's suddenly a symbol of good luck. The Harry Potter character has become an unofficial mascot for the Year of the Horse, thanks to a linguistic twist in his Mandarin name, "Ma er fu." The first character means "horse," the last "fortune" or "blessing," a combo that loosely turns the Slytherin villain into "horse fortune" for 2026's Lunar New Year, per the Guardian.

That bit of wordplay has kicked off a wave of memes, decor, fan art, and merch on Chinese social media, with images of a grinning young Malfoy (as played by Tom Felton) turning up on red "new year" posters and atop cartoon horses in homes, offices, and malls. Felton, now 38 and recently back onstage on Broadway in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, has joined the fun, sharing a photo of his face on a mall banner promising a "magical awakening that attracts abundant wealth."

Fans online have called Felton's reaction "100% hilarious," per the BBC. The moment lands as the franchise deepens its foothold in China, where about 200 million copies of the books have sold and a major Harry Potter studio tour is slated to open in Shanghai in 2027, per the Guardian. CNN notes that the Year of the Horse kicks off on Feb. 17.