Chris Columbus shares his thoughts on HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter TV series.
In an interview with People magazine, the director of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (also known as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone) and Chamber of Secrets said that turning the book into a series was “a great idea. ” he said.
“I think it’s a great idea, because there are certain limitations when you make a movie,” Columbus said.
“Our movie was two hours and 40 minutes, and the second one was about the same length,” he said. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter commemorating the 20th anniversary of the release of Philosopher’s Stone, Columbus reflected on the film’s grueling filming schedule. “It took us 160 days to film ‘The Philosopher’s Stone,’ which is a ridiculous amount of time. And then immediately after we stopped filming, we started filming ‘Chamber of Secrets,’ which took another 160 days. “That’s about 320 days of continuous shooting, not including the second unit,” he told THR.
He went on to explain that the series provides an opportunity to further explore the book’s plot points that could not be represented in the film.
“I think the fact that we can afford to have (multiple) episodes in each book is great,” Columbus said. “You get to see all the things in this series that we didn’t have a chance to do, all the great scenes that we couldn’t put on film.”
Amid news of the TV series, Potter fans have been given some dream casting choices for new Harry Potter roles, including Cillian Murphy as Lord Voldemort.
“Well, Killian is one of my favorite actors, so that would be great,” Columbus said. Ralph Fiennes, who played the dark wizard throughout the film series, also approved of the casting choice, saying on Watch What Happens Live, “Cillian is a great actor…I fully support Killian.”
During the Max 2025 Slate presentation with Casey Bloys last December, several members of the show’s creative team revealed that the series is scheduled to begin filming in midsummer 2025 and debut in 2026. I made it.
The series is written and executive produced by Francesca Gardiner. Mark Mylod will executive produce and direct multiple episodes of the series for HBO in association with Bronte Film & Television and Warner Bros. Television. Despite being at the center of controversy, Rowling will serve as an executive producer on the series. Neil Blair and Ruth Kenley-Letts of Bronte Film & Television and David Heyman of Heyday Films also serve as executive producers.
HBO said the Harry Potter series will be a “faithful adaptation” of author J.K. Rowling’s hit fantasy series and will be “deeper” than the movies. The series will feature a new cast that will lead a new generation of fandom, and will be filled with incredible detail and beloved characters that Harry Potter fans have loved for over 25 years.
