Honestly, it’s kind of amazing it took this long. According to The Hollywood Reporter, HBO Max executives have been meeting with writers about a possible Harry Potter (pictured above) live-action television series. It’s unclear whether this would be another adaptation of the books or something new set in the Wizarding World. “Sources say broad ideas have been discussed as part of the early-stage exploratory meetings,” according to the report.
This is early, early news; HBO Max and Warner Bros. told the Hollywood Reporter in a statement, “There are no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform.” But Potter is obviously a huge moneymaker for Warner Bros., and though the fraught Fantastic Beasts movies aren’t ending anytime soon, it’s no surprise that the studio is exploring more ways to make money from the franchise.
J.K. Rowling, who has recently come under fire for propagating transphobic rhetoric, needs neither more money nor more press, but she does control the rights and will, alas, probably be involved. There’s a ton of potential for a show to diversify and expand the Wizarding World—imagine what could be done with all new writers playing in this sandbox! But Rowling has thus far only opted to keep telling safe stories about very special wizard boys and the women who support them. I’d love to be wrong about this, but I won’t be holding my breath.
