The Harry Potter books are coming back to life with a TV remake, which has naturally drawn a lot of criticism, but this ignores one harsh reality about the movies. The Harry Potter books became a worldwide phenomenon in the late 1990s and the 2000s, and the story of The Boy Who Lived continues to have a solid and loyal fanbase. Although over a decade has passed since the Harry Potter movie saga ended, Harry’s story is now getting a remake in the shape of a TV show, set to be released on Max.
A Harry Potter TV show was announced to be in development in 2021, but not much is known about how it will cover the books. At the time of writing, the Harry Potter TV show is in the process of finding its main cast, but some of the actors from the movies have expressed their very honest opinions about the remake. Although all those opinions are valid, they ignore a harsh but key reality about the Harry Potter movies that the TV show can actually fix and improve.
The Harry Potter Remake’s Criticisms Ignore How Much The Movies Changed The Books
The Harry Potter Movies Had To Leave A Lot Behind
Fitting seven books into eight movies is a huge challenge, and there are many limitations in a movie format, more so when dealing with a fantasy world as rich as the wizarding world. Because of that, it’s not surprising that the Harry Potter movie saga had to leave many characters, scenes, lines, and events out, as well as change some moments to better fit the format. Among the notable characters who were completely left out of the Harry Potter movies are ghost teacher Professor Bins, Winky the House Elf, Teddy Lupin, and Charlie Weasley, one of Ron’s oldest brothers.
The
Harry Potter
movies left out scenes that would have been interesting to see on the big screen and would have added to the characters’ stories.
Some characters were cast and some of their scenes were shot, but their appearances were ultimately cut from the movie, as happened to Hogwarts’ poltergeist, Peeves (played by Rik Mayall). The Harry Potter movies also left out scenes that would have been interesting to see on the big screen and would have added to the characters’ stories. Among those cut scenes are Neville’s visits to his parents at St. Mungo’s Hospital, Harry coping with grief after Sirius’ death in Order of the Phoenix, and the Battle of the Astronomy Tower in Half-Blood Prince.
Many other scenes were included in the Harry Potter movies but with a couple of changes, and while most worked well, others were heavily criticized by fans (and with good reason). An endlessly criticized and even mocked scene comes from Goblet of Fire, when Dumbledore confronts Harry about his name being in the Goblet. In the books, Dumbledore calmly approaches Harry, but in the movies, he does so in a rush and a bit aggressively. Another criticized change was Voldemort’s death, which turned him into ashes in the movie.
HBO’s Harry Potter TV Show Is A Chance To Make Up For All The Things The Movies Cut
A TV Show Format Will Be Beneficial To The Harry Potter Remake
The biggest criticism of the Harry Potter TV remake is that many fans and actors feel it’s unnecessary. The most recent criticism came from Jared Harris, son of original Dumbledore actor Richard Harris, who, when asked if he would be interested in playing Dumbledore in the TV series, replied “No, thank you” and questioned the making of a remake, saying “the films were fantastic” and should be left alone. Harris’ words echoed the feelings of many about the Harry Potter TV show, but they’re forgetting that it’s the best chance to make up for everything the movies had to cut.
The
Harry Potter
TV show can be the adaptation that fans of the books originally wanted.
A TV format gives a lot more time and freedom to cover more characters, events, and scenes from the movies, as well as better develop the characters. Surely, still not all characters and scenes will make it to the Harry Potter TV show, but those that are key to the story of Harry Potter and company that couldn’t be featured in the movies can finally be adapted. In this regard, the Harry Potter TV show can be the adaptation that fans of the books originally wanted.
The Harry Potter Remake & Original Movies Can (And Should) Co-Exist
There’s Space & Audience For Both Harry Potter Projects
While it’s understandable that fans and actors of the Harry Potter movie saga aren’t fully on board with the TV remake, the truth is that there’s space and an audience for both. The Harry Potter TV remake won’t take away the impact and legacy of the movies and won’t make them any less great and beloved. The TV show will be a new look and perspective at a very well-known story, through which some questions and gaps left by the movies can be answered and filled in.
Fans of
Harry Potter
will find something that appeals to them in both the movies and the TV show.
The wizarding world is so rich that many stories and media can co-exist without a problem – look no further than at the Fantastic Beasts movie trilogy. Fans of Harry Potter will find something that appeals to them in both the movies and the TV show, and there really isn’t a reason to pit them against each other or choose one over the other, and they can perfectly co-exist.