One of the more controversial announcements in recent memory over at Warner Bros. has been the new ‘Harry Potter’ series. Why is it controversial? Well, obviously, there’s still the drama surrounding J.K. Rowling and her anti-trans quotes. But perhaps even bigger than that, is the fact that the original ‘Harry Potter’ films are so beloved by millions of people, it’s difficult to imagine the series being able to replicate that success. Of course, WB is still going to try.
Speaking at MIPCOM (via THR), Channing Dungey, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Television Group, talked about the progress that is being made on the ‘Harry Potter’ TV series. Not only that, she detailed why she thinks the TV show will be able to differentiate itself from the film franchise. Basically, with each season covering one book, there is a depth to the series that the films just can’t replicate.
“There’s not a lot to talk about at this moment. We’ve got our fantastic writing staff in place and they are doing what they need to do. And casting calls have opened up in the U.K. and Ireland, so the process is moving along. It’s going quite well,” said Dungey. “It’s an unbelievable dream, honestly, and as somebody who is a huge fan of books, the opportunity to get to explore them in maybe a little bit more in-depth than you can in just a two-hour film, that’s the whole reason we’re on this journey.”
As she mentioned, casting calls have opened up for the ‘Harry Potter’ series. That might actually be the most difficult aspect of the new show. Because the films are so beloved, the cast for those movies is still held in high regard. Folks love Daniel Radcliffe as Potter, for example. So, it’s going to be interesting to see how the public reacts to a new cast of young folks.
Obviously, we’re still pretty far away from seeing ‘Harry Potter’ on the TV. That said, it’s clear that things are moving along.
