Why A Harry Potter Reboot Would Be Better Than A 9th Movie Or Cursed Child
Though the Harry Potter franchise could make a ninth movie or a film about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a complete series reboot may be the way to go. The Harry Potter films created one of the most successful movie franchises ever. Altogether, the films have earned more than $7 billion at the box office. But beyond box office numbers, the franchise has launched the careers of several popular actors, inspired a thriving theme park area at Universal Studios, and become ubiquitous throughout pop culture. Though the last film in the franchise, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, came out in 2011, the Harry Potter movies continue to drum up excitement among fans, even being one of the biggest draws for HBO Max at its launch.
The Harry Potter franchise lives on even after the main films. The Cursed Child, a J.K. Rowling-endorsed play, is a continuation of the story, showing what Harry Potter's kids get up to at Hogwarts 19 years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The play also revisits the franchise's main characters, Harry, Hermione, and Ron, exploring their lives years down the road. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them also adds to the Harry Potter universe, giving a prequel to Rowling's story about The Boy Who Lived, deepening the lore of the franchise, and putting several characters in a new light, including Albus Dumbledore and Nagini.
With the franchise still finding new audiences, it's only a matter of time before studios make another Harry Potter film. However, rumors have stirred that a Harry Potter reboot, perhaps in TV form, could be cooking for HBO Max, and it seems like that's the right way to go. The original movies missed many major points from Rowling's books, and a new series could explore everything previously left out. Additionally, the new Harry Potter material, such as The Cursed Child and Fantastic Beasts, make the universe more complicated and confusing. At this point, many Harry Potter actors want to move on with their careers, which makes a ninth movie more challenging to pull off, but a TV reboot offers new opportunities.
One of the major criticisms of Harry Potter is that the films exclude several essential elements from the books. Even Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, one of the films that more closely resembles its book, cuts many key characters and events. For instance, the movie cuts out Peeves the Poltergeist, Snape's potion defense for the Sorcerer's Stone, and—in a small moment—the Weasley twins don't bewitch snowballs to bounce off the back of Quirrell's head, effectively hitting Voldemort in the face with snow. The other films are even worse. For example, the movies completely cut out S.P.E.W., Hermione's efforts to liberate house-elves; the explanation for Snape being the Half-Blood Prince; and Peter Pettigrew's death. Additionally, the story of Ravenclaw's Diadem, one of the final Horcruxes, is completely changed.
The Cursed Child has many faults. Though Rowling influenced the story, Jack Thorne wrote the play. As such, the words in the production lack certain magic found throughout the books. Unfortunately, Thorne's Cursed Child would make an infuriating movie for fans, as it completely misses the original books' main characters. For instance, in Rowling's books, Ron is a hot-headed but lovably loyal friend. In The Cursed Child, he's a buffoon, often used to get a laugh with forgettable jokes. Similarly, Hermione Granger, a headstrong and talented wizard in Rowling's books, is reduced to a bitter and hateful grouch through time-traveling hijinks. Additionally, the story gives Voldemort a child and makes Cedric Diggory become a Death Eater. With such wild left turns from the books, The Cursed Child is criticized as bad fan fiction. A live performance full of special effects makes the Broadway play worthwhile, but nice effects aren't enough to sell a lousy movie in 2021.
Fantastic Beasts, another of Rowling's additions to the Harry Potter canon, has its own problems. Mainly, the movies make the Harry Potter universe increasingly complicated. For instance, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald has a confusing story that does little besides add plot holes to the original books. In the film, Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) tells Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) that he's a member of the Dumbledore family, Albus' brother Aurelius Dumbledore, which doesn't make a ton of sense since the Harry Potter books don't mention Albus having a secret brother.
Many actors from the Harry Potter franchise have distanced themselves from the films. For example, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson seemed to consciously make more eclectic and adult movie choices in the years immediately following the franchise. Radcliffe also said a 20th-anniversary Potter reunion isn't likely because of his busy schedule. However, though Radcliffe may not return as Harry Potter, the actor has ruminated on playing a different character in a potential Harry Potter reboot.
Additionally, tragic losses mean the original cast could never reunite. With the franchise being two decades old, Harry Potter fans have mourned for several cast members over the years. Unfortunately, since the films, Helen McCrory, who played Narcissa Malfoy; John Hurt, who played Mr. Ollivander; Alan Rickman, who played Severus Snape; and numerous other key actors have died. With such devastating losses, an additional film with the original Harry Potter stars would never feel complete.
A reboot offers the Harry Potter franchise the chance for a new perspective. The original movies consisted of several different directors, each with their own different visions. Because of that, the tone and style of the Harry Potter movies change drastically throughout the franchise. A reboot that's not bound to the original films could bring about a more consistent vision and a new take on one of the most popular book series of all time.
Additionally, an existence outside the original movies provides the opportunity for storytelling in a new format. Adapting books to movies always brings disappointment, as films inevitably cut key characters and plots for time. A Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie would have similar limitations. However, a TV series could provide the leeway for the franchise to cover plot points from the books that were either glossed over or entirely ignored. The early seasons of Game of Thrones are a perfect proof of concept. Ahead of season 5, Game of Thrones stuck closely to George R.R. Martin's novels, receiving praise from fans and critics. A Harry Potter TV series could have similar mischief managed.
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