diff --git a/remote/src/main/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializer.scala b/remote/src/main/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializer.scala
index e2503d11bc..c45442cbec 100644
--- a/remote/src/main/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializer.scala
+++ b/remote/src/main/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializer.scala
@@ -181,7 +181,10 @@ class ProtobufSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends BaseSerializer
    * and still bind with the same class (interface).
    */
   private def isInAllowList(clazz: Class[?]): Boolean = {
-    isBoundToProtobufSerializer(clazz) || isInAllowListClassName(clazz)
+    // The name check comes first because it cannot throw: `isBoundToProtobufSerializer` calls
+    // `serializerFor`, which raises (and fills in the stack trace of) a NotSerializableException
+    // for a class that is not bound.
+    isInAllowListClassName(clazz) || isBoundToProtobufSerializer(clazz)
   }
 
   private def isBoundToProtobufSerializer(clazz: Class[?]): Boolean = {
@@ -194,8 +197,10 @@ class ProtobufSerializer(val system: ExtendedActorSystem) extends BaseSerializer
   }
 
   private def isInAllowListClassName(clazz: Class[?]): Boolean = {
+    // getSuperclass is null for an interface, for Object and for a primitive, and the manifest
+    // class comes off the wire, so it can be any of those
     allowedClassNames(clazz.getName) ||
-    allowedClassNames(clazz.getSuperclass.getName) ||
+    ((clazz.getSuperclass ne null) && allowedClassNames(clazz.getSuperclass.getName)) ||
     clazz.getInterfaces.exists(c => allowedClassNames(c.getName))
   }
 }
diff --git a/remote/src/test/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializerSpec.scala b/remote/src/test/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializerSpec.scala
index 3b9885398e..9d79c066bc 100644
--- a/remote/src/test/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializerSpec.scala
+++ b/remote/src/test/scala/org/apache/pekko/remote/serialization/ProtobufSerializerSpec.scala
@@ -123,6 +123,24 @@ class ProtobufSerializerSpec extends PekkoSpec(s"""
       }
     }
 
+    "reject an interface manifest rather than failing on its missing superclass" in {
+      // getSuperclass is null for an interface, and the manifest class comes off the wire.
+      // This used to raise NullPointerException from the allow list check instead of the
+      // IllegalArgumentException that refusing the class is supposed to produce.
+      val originalSerializer = ser.serializerFor(classOf[MyMessage])
+      intercept[IllegalArgumentException] {
+        ser.deserialize(Array[Byte](), originalSerializer.identifier, classOf[Runnable].getName).get
+      }.getMessage should include("allow list")
+    }
+
+    "reject java.lang.Object as a manifest" in {
+      // Object.getSuperclass is null too
+      val originalSerializer = ser.serializerFor(classOf[MyMessage])
+      intercept[IllegalArgumentException] {
+        ser.deserialize(Array[Byte](), originalSerializer.identifier, classOf[Object].getName).get
+      }.getMessage should include("allow list")
+    }
+
     "allow deserialization of classes in configured allowed classes" in {
       val originalSerializer = ser.serializerFor(classOf[MyMessage])