The Wizarding World is packed with talented magic users. However, most Harry Potter fans agree that when it comes to the top Hogwarts student, Hermione Granger takes the cake…or does she?
Get ready to have all your Harry Potter expectations blown out of the water because it turns out that (technically anyway) there may have been a Harry Potter character that was smarter than the plucky Gryffindor. As a user pointed out on the Harry Potter Subreddit, Percy Weasley also did 12 courses for his O.W.L exams, and unlike Hermione, he achieved this without needing to alter time.
If you need a magical reminder, Hermione did 12 courses for her O.W.L exams. However, in order to accommodate all the extra classes and save the world from Voldemort on a regular, she had to use a Time-Turner, often going back in time to get all her work done. Eventually, Hermione ended up dropping two courses as well, letting her return to a normal schedule. But that means she only achieved ten O.W.L.s.
On the other hand, Percy managed to do 12 and graduated with perfect N.E.W.T. s as well. To be fair to Hermione, it has never been clarified why Percy’s timetable was possible without any time traveling. So, we could be looking at a plot hole instead of a firm confirmation that he is the most intelligent Harry Potter character.
We should also clarify that we don’t know how well he passed his O.W.L.s. He could have just passed certain subjects and happily gone on his way. On the other hand, Hermione is a perfectionist and insistently studying even for courses she hates, like Muggle Studies.
Hermione dropped two courses not because she couldn’t pass the subjects but because she was burning herself out trying to be the top student. So yes, Percy Weasley is technically “smarter” than Hermione in terms of academic accomplishments, but in practice, it may be a bit of a different story.
Really, we recommend watching all the Harry Potter movies in order again to judge for yourself, because in our eyes Hermione is still the brainiest witch out there.
For more wizarding fun, here are our guides on the Harry Potter cast and the best Harry Potter villains of all time. We also have explainers on everything you need to know about a potential Cursed Child movie and the Harry Potter TV series.