There has been talk for several months now about the new Harry Potter series coming to HBO next year, so it’s only natural that the old cast has wondered what it means to see this new iteration of the story.
The series, which began production in July, features a new trio of young actors—Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout, and Arabella Stanton—playing Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger in the seven-season series, one for each novel in the saga.
For Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson, who brought the characters to life in the eight films released between 2001 and 2011, seeing new faces on the scene is “surreal” — and they are processing it together.
What Daniel Radcliffe said about the new Harry Potter series
Radcliffe told PEOPLE that he has stayed in touch with Grint and Watson since the news of the new adaptation broke, and that all three have reflected on “how surreal it is to see people embarking on that journey after all these years.”
Radcliffe, who stars alongside Tracy Morgan in a brand new NBC comedy, The Fall & Rise of Reggie Dinkins, said that although he and his former colleagues haven’t had “many specific exchanges about the show,” they all agree on the emotions they are feeling.
“It’s one of those cases where I think we all know how the others feel, because we feel the same way,” he explained. “Just seeing photos of these kids makes you want to hug them. I think that’s the impulse we all feel, mainly.”
Radcliffe and the future of Harry Potter: Will he ever return to the franchise?
The actor, who rose to fame thanks to the film saga, has always shown affection for the character over the years, but also a desire to build an independent career, choosing very different roles in theater, independent cinema, and more experimental productions.
In several interviews, Radcliffe has explained that he feels “happy as a spectator” with regard to new projects linked to the magical world, such as the HBO reboot series. At the moment, he is not involved in the production and there have been no official announcements about his return, either in the form of a cameo or in more structured roles. While not completely closing the door on a possible future participation, the actor has hinted that, for now, he prefers to leave room for the new generation of actors and observe the evolution of the franchise from the outside.
Why the series will be different from the films
The new series based on Harry Potter will be different first and foremost in terms of narrative structure. While the film saga had to condense very substantial novels into films of about two and a half hours, the serial format will allow an entire season to be devoted to each book, offering more space for subplots, secondary characters, and details of the magical world that had been reduced or eliminated in the films.
Another key element is the stated approach of greater fidelity to J.K. Rowling’s texts. The series will aim for a more in-depth adaptation, with the possibility of better exploring narrative arcs such as those of minor characters like Neville, Ginny, or the members of the Order of the Phoenix, as well as the school and political dynamics of Hogwarts that were less explored in the films.
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