Harry Potter’s Mad Eye Moody Fan Theory Makes Goblet of Fire So Much Darker

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire marked a major tonal turning point in Warner Bros.’ beloved Harry Potter movie franchise. Kickstarting with a haunting opening scene, where Death Eaters ruthlessly attack the Quidditch World Cup final, the film descends further and further into darker storytelling across its 157-minute runtime. The very concept of the Tri-Wizard Cup trials is brutal, with the potential risk of being burned alive by a dragon, drowning, or being engulfed or lost in the maze, not to mention the death of Cedric “My Boy!” Diggory (Robert Pattinson).

But, the reveal of Barty Crouch Jr. (David Tennant) infiltrating Hogwarts as Alastor “Mad Eye” Moody (Brendan Gleeson) using polyjuice potion only heightens the dark reaches of The Goblet of Fire. In the third act, when Crouch Jr.’s plan is uncovered, the real Mad Eye Moody can be found at the bottom of a tightly locked magical chest, desperately awaiting rescue. However, eagle-eyed viewers may notice a small detail about Moody’s iconic glass eye.

Could the Real Mad Eye Moody See Barty Crouch Jr.’s Plan?

As well as being astutely tall and walking with a giant stick, Mad Eye Moody sports a visually distinct glass eye, which can flicker from side to side without his real eye needing to follow. When the real Moody is found at the bottom of the chest, he is stripped completely of his clothes, with his hand covering his missing eye (which he lost during the First Wizarding War against Death Eaters). As Barty Crouch Jr. begins to transform back into himself, the eye pops out and rolls around the floor. Despite not being attached to anyone, it still moves side-to-side as if it’s always in use.

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This has led fans to believe that the real Alastor Moody could see everything Barty Crouch Jr. was doing while imprisoned in the chest. Throughout the film, the fake Moody manipulates Harry Potter, pretending to support him as a mentor throughout the Tri-Wizard Cup. In the final act, it is revealed just how much the fake Alastor helped Harry through the trials, leading Neville Longbottom to gillyweed, telling Cedric to open the golden egg underwater, and informing Hagrid about the dragons, all so Harry would make it to the final challenge. The fake Moody was also responsible for tampering with the cup/portkey, making it send Harry and Cedric to Tom Riddle’s grave instead of the finish line.

Meanwhile, the real Alastor was stuck at the bottom of the chest. Not only was the real Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher destitute, isolated, and presumed to be starving at the bottom of his cell, but he could have seen everything happening to Harry. As if his capture and imprisonment weren’t torture enough, Alastor would have sat helplessly in a dark cell, looking through his magical eye as the only hope in the fight against Voldemort is manipulated like a puppet by a Death Eater using his own face. The real Alastor would have had no way to help, and the emotional turmoil of such psychological torture would be enough to break anyone.

Barty Crouch Jr.’s Plan Should Have Devastated Harry Potter

Unfortunately, when The Boy Who Lived has a hundred new problems every school year (they really should send some school inspectors to Hogwarts), certain story threads and elements have to be left behind. Immediately following The Goblet of Fire, Harry has to form his own secret army to fight against Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) while connecting with his godfather, Sirius Black (Gary Oldman). As a result, the Harry Potter movies have little screentime left to explore the emotional aftermath of Barty Crouch Jr.’s scheme. Harry spent an entire year trusting the man he thought was Alastor Moody, only for that entire relationship to be upended by one of Voldemort’s henchmen.

The real Alastor and Harry’s relationship is seemingly repaired between The Goblet of Fire and The Order of the Phoenix, as Mad Eye makes a brief appearance in the follow-up film before playing a much larger role in The Deathly Hallows Part. 1. But, it would have been interesting to see the pair attempt to bridge their new friendship, and for Alastor to regain Harry’s trust on-screen, rather than presuming it happened during the school holidays.

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It hasn’t been confirmed whether Alastor Moody can see through his glass eye when he’s not wearing it. But, in a world of moving staircases, talking hats, and wizards pooping on the floor (which is lore according to J.K. Rowling’s unhinged tweets following the movies’ release), it is easy to imagine Alastor putting a spell on the eye so he can use it for spying and espionage against Voldemort’s forces. For a powerful wizard who fought in the First Wizarding War, enchanting a glass eye should be nothing more than a party trick. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is streaming on Max.