Bill was actually a square

You know what they say, appearances can be deceiving and that applies to Bill Weasley. Yes, he might have had the earring and ponytail that made him appear ‘edgy’. Yet, that was all a façade, the real Bill was rather square. Though we would like to point out that there’s nothing wrong with being a square – often it makes you a rather good role model.

Speaking of role models, let us debunk the rebel air he likes to exude with just two words – Head Boy. Now that is a position given to people who are excellent examples to look up to. The type that tries hard at school, follows the rules and have a Hermione Granger-esque vibe. Bill held that position during his time at Hogwarts and his family were very proud, but it probably doesn’t really help with his ‘cool guy’ image. Especially if you look at the other Weasley who held that position, Percy. We don’t think we need to say any more than that.

Then there’s Bill’s job. His role may have seemed glamourous on the surface – even we admit that being a Curse-Breaker seems rather daring. However, who did Bill work for? Gringotts. Yes, Bill worked for a bank. There’s nothing devil-may-care about working for such a stuffy institution – even a wizarding one. Banks are proper, formal and require you to be smartly dressed. It is not exactly a fit for someone who likes to be considered the cat’s pyjamas.

To have that job, you also have to study hard, do well in all of your exams and excel in probably one of the trickiest subjects offered at Hogwarts – Arithmancy. The wizarding school system might not teach maths in the Muggle way, but we would say this is the closest wizarding alternative. While it is very impressive that Bill Weasley had a flair for such a complex subject, numbers hardly have a rockstar reputation.

Ultimately, you can have all the piercings, you can have the trendy haircut but that doesn’t necessarily make you cool. Like Bill, you can appear cool on the surface but if you dig a little deeper you will find that secret nerd. But you know what… being cool is overrated. Do you really want people to judge you based on your dragon-hide boots being trendy or would you rather they judged you for on the content of your character? For Bill, that was an intelligent role model who knew the value of hard work and a good education. We’d take that any day.

Bill was actually pretty cool

Alright, before we get into this – here’s a question. What is ‘cool’ anyway? Isn’t the mere act of being ‘cool’ subjective? Isn’t ‘cool’ a state of mind? It’s not the hairstyle or the avant-garde jewellery or any other quiddities that makes someone cool – it’s the confidence they have in the first place to pull all that off. That’s what ‘cool’ is – it’s about the way you carry yourself, that self-belief, the interior, not the exterior.

The more we learn about Bill, the more it seemed apparent that he was feeling it both ways. And that can be tough when you’re the eldest son out of seven siblings. All eyes are on you to set the example. For Bill, that meant all the trimmings: Prefect, Head Boy, cushty job at Gringotts bank. It’s funny seeing Molly interact with Bill – grappling with that cognitive dissonance; her son has a top brass career and an impressive air of responsibility, but if only he would get a haircut... But as Bill says himself, nobody cares what he looks like at work, as long as he brings home plenty of treasure.

Why can’t ‘being good at your job’ be deemed just as cool as your dress-sense? Bill was great as what he did, and very matter-of-fact about it. We’d wager that no-nonsense attitude was the thing that led him to be an influential force on the rest of his siblings, rather than becoming a point of ridicule, like Percy.

So why did the Weasley twins target Percy and not Bill, who was also a Prefect and Head Boy? Again, it’s all about self-assurance. We’ve argued before that Percy was spurred by his insecurities which we believe ended up manifesting as a snooty attitude. For Bill, he seemed comfortable being smart and rocking the badge that came with it.

Although we didn’t see Bill’s Hogwarts days – we could compare him to Hermione – who was often bullied for her ‘swotty’ behaviour. Even Professor Snape famously called her an 'insufferable know-it-all’ despite being an actual teacher. But usually, when kids are making fun of others for being overly studious, it’s from a place of self-doubt within themselves. And that’s not very cool, is it?

Some would say it’s simply off-putting behaviour to be a try-hard. But our argument here is that Bill and Hermione weren’t try-hards... they just tried! Hard! Whereas Percy found the need to brag about it. Hermione’s love of learning and constant visits to the library would eventually bag her a date with another cool character, Quidditch superstar Viktor Krum, He knew exactly what we’re talking about!

And that brings us back to Bill. We reckon it wasn’t the fang earring or those fancy boots that made him cool, but the combination of all of it. Here was a wizard who didn’t seem phased about what people thought of him: he sought to be his best self and encouraged others to thrive too. And that is very, very cool.