British actor David Thewlis, famed for his role as Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter films, has ushered in 2026 with a social media post that left his 362,000 followers both amused and perplexed.
A Deliberately Obscured Celebration
On New Year's Eve, the 62-year-old star posted a photograph featuring himself alongside 14 friends and family members. The scene was festive, set before a Christmas tree, but with one glaringly unusual detail: every single face in the image was completely blurred or pixelated.
In a caption that perfectly matched the image's dry humour, Thewlis wrote: 'Spent a wonderful New Year's Eve at an undisclosed location with undisclosed friends and family. In the name of privacy I have pixelated all their faces and personalities, including my own. Happy New Year folks.'
Fan Reactions: From Black Mirror to Epstein Files
The post was instantly interpreted as a tongue-in-cheek commentary on the modern paradox of sharing private moments on public platforms. Fans were quick to draw pop culture parallels, with many noting its resemblance to the dystopian sci-fi series Black Mirror.
Specifically, commenters referenced the episode 'White Christmas', where individuals can be 'blocked' in real life, appearing as blurred figures. One fan, 13elucky, commented: 'I felt like that Black Mirror episode looking at this picture haha Happy New Year to you and your pixelated loved ones.' Another, TracyAnno, simply agreed: 'This looks like that episode of Black Mirror.'
Others saw a darker connection, mentioning the famously redacted images from the Epstein files. The post sparked broader conversation about online sharing, with user merylm6 reflecting: 'Very funny and very accurate. I never get the people that want their privacy (totally fair) but are so desperate to show off to the world they can't live with just not posting said private moment.'
Thewlis on Technology and Future Projects
The actor, who has recently appeared in major projects like Avatar: Fire and Ash, Netflix's Kaos, and Disney Plus's The Artful Dodger, has been vocal about his scepticism towards certain technologies. In a recent interview with Sky News, he criticised the use of AI in the creative arts.
Discussing James Cameron's decision to avoid AI in the latest Avatar film, Thewlis stated: 'I think there's something intrinsically bad about AI in this industry, in the creative arts. I think the minute it starts taking human creativity away, we should reject it.'
Fans can next see Thewlis reprising his role as Fagin in the second season of Disney's The Artful Dodger. Meanwhile, keen-eyed followers discovered an un-blurred version of his New Year snapshot on the Instagram account of his ex-partner, actress Anna Friel, with whom he shares a daughter and has remained friends since their 2010 split.
