On April 12th, HBO Max officially announced that a TV adaptation of the beloved Harry Potter book series is in the works. For about a week prior, there were rumors of a Harry Potter series because of a leak, but no one knew what it would be about. Now we know.

The series will follow the original seven books. Before the announcement, fans speculated that it would be a spin-off series about an area we barely saw in the books – Harry’s parents and their friends going to Hogwarts, for example.

Because it follows the original series, it is assumed to have one season per book. HBO Max, however, has stated that the show will span ten years. This doesn’t follow the seven seasons for seven books idea. Maybe there will be two seasons for some of the longer books, or maybe some of the seasons will last more than a year.

The series will have an all-new cast for the main characters, but fans have wondered if any of the original cast will have cameo roles. The search for actors has only just started, so no cast members have been announced.

No release date for the show has been announced, but it won’t be out for a while. So far, there’s an expected release of 2025 or 2026, so we likely won’t get a release date any time soon.

In lieu of the controversies surrounding the Harry Potter author, J.K Rowling, people have wondered what her involvement will be. HBO Max said that Rowling will be one of the executive producers. Rowling herself has said that she wants this series to be as close to the source material as possible.

My Thoughts

I’m a big Harry Potter fan, and I, for one, am excited about this series. I’ve seen a lot of hate and negative reception, but I don’t understand it. One big criticism I’ve seen is “no one asked for this” or “no one wants this” which is actively false. In the Harry Potter fandom, lots of people have been wishing for a TV version of the books. Lots of people asked for this and wanted this.

Another complaint I’ve seen is that HBO Max is only making this to make more money off the Harry Potter name. So what if they are? They’re a business. Companies have to make money. Whether or not it’s just a “cash grab” doesn’t affect my enjoyment of something.

People have also said things like, “why do we need another adaptation, the movies already exist” and “the movies are incredible adaptations” to which I disagree. Yes, the movies are adaptations of the books, but they are far from great. The movies leave out so many important plotlines and characters, completely alter some characters’ personalities, and add unnecessary scenes and details.

With this TV show, there’s a lot more time to include every detail of the books. It can include characters the movies left out, such as Winky and Luda Bagman. It can do justice to characters the movies ruined, like Ron and Ginny. Almost every plot point will have a chance to shine on a screen.

I know the show won’t be coming out for a long time, but I’m looking forward to it. I have hope that it will be a faithful adaptation of the book series I love.