With a huge, ever-growing fanbase, adapting the Harry Potter series for the big screen might have been a daunting task - but these four filmmakers made it look easy. Starting with Chris Columbus and ending with David Yates, the film franchise turned a beloved children's book series into a global phenomenon.
These are the top-rated movies on IMDb for the filmmakers who each left their distinctive, indelible mark on the Wizarding World, adapting the story of an orphan with a heart of gold for billions of fans. Though most of the directors' other films are far from fantasy epics, it is easy to trace their artistic roots and see parallels between their work before, on, and after Harry Potter.
The Legend of Tarzan (2016) 6.2 - David Yates
After helming the last four Harry Potter films and slated to direct the entire Fantastic Beasts series, David Yates has become the preeminent Wizarding World director. Though more of a television director, 2016's The Legend of Tarzan was his first feature film after wrapping Deathly Hallows.
The movie was criticized for its slow pace and generic premise, though the addition of George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson) received praise. Yates' experience working on HP clearly helped him direct the fast-paced action sequences and lead a project with such a huge budget. Both films also required a lot of CGI; Yates' skill at balancing live-action with CG shines equally.
Four Weddings And A Funeral (1994) 7.1 - Mike Newell
After American and Mexican filmmakers (Columbus and Cuarón, respectively) helmed the series, Mike Newell brought a British perspective to the Harry Potter franchise. Four Weddings and a Funeral was a huge financial success, and was one of the first rom coms where the guy falls first.
The quirky, self-effacing characters of Four Weddings are not only extremely British, they have much in common with Harry and friends, especially Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. While non-British audiences might have been shocked by the blunt manner in which the HP characters spoke to each other, British viewers found it natural, and befitting the source material.
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) 7.1 - Chris Columbus
This much-beloved classic about a divorced father who finds an unorthodox way to spend more time with his kids is one of Columbus' most memorable films. The Robin Williams-led comedy-drama film was a mega-hit and has since inspired a musical adaptation on Broadway.
Columbus is best known for directing comedies about broken families. His talent for casting and directing children and creating financially successful films with universal appeal is on display beautifully in Mrs. Doubtfire, and was a big part of his being tapped to adapt the Harry Potter series. Columbus's two HP films succeeded at both attracting new fans and pleasing old ones.
Enchanted April (1991) 7.3 - Mike Newell
Enchanted April, based upon a novel by Elizabeth von Arnim, showcases Newell's skill at adapting a book for the silver screen. The movie is about four English women who bond while staying at an Italian castle, far away from their dreary lives in post-WWI London.
The film was nominated for three Academy Awards, raising Newell's profile. Though the period piece is far from both coming-of-age and fantasy, it features excellent production design and sweeping cinematography that help transport the viewer to a more magical world. It also proved Newell could direct big-name actors like Miranda Richardson, Alfred Molina, and Jim Broadbent.
Y Tu Mamá También (2001) 7.7 - Alfonso Cuarón
Cuarón's hauntingly bittersweet coming-of-age story about two teenage boys who take a road trip with a mysterious older woman showcases the director's unique storytelling ability. The Mexican film gave him his first Oscar nomination in the category for Best Writing, Original Screenplay.
Cuarón's skill at working with young actors shines in Y tu mamá también, something he'd previously proven with A Little Princess (1995) and likely helped him get hired to helm Prisoner of Azkaban. Cuarón's legacy in the Wizarding World lies in his switch to more "Muggle" attire to make the characters more relatable and his ability to coax more natural performances out of the leads.
Home Alone (1990) 7.7 - Chris Columbus
This holiday classic about a kid who booby-traps his home to protect it from burglars after being left behind by his family at Christmas is arguably Columbus' most beloved film. It has spawned several sequels and countless memes, and turned Macaulay Culkin into a household name.
Columbus' touch is light, charming, and humorous, attributes he brought into the first two Harry Potter films. Home Alone's Kevin has much in common with neglected Harry: they are both driven by love to rise to the occasion and face much older and experienced foes. Columbus' instinctual understanding of children has helped create some of the best kid characters in movie history.
Roma (2018) 7.7 - Alfonso Cuarón
Roma won Cuarón Academy Awards for Best Achievement in Directing and Cinematography and was nominated for Best Picture and Original Screenplay. Based on his childhood growing up in Mexico City, it is Cuarón's most personal project to date.
The black and white minimalist film has little in common with the Wizarding World on surface-value, yet it is again a great example of the auteur's natural ability to extract powerful performances out of child actors. The lonely and brave social outcast protagonist Cleo (Oscar-nominated Yalitza Aparicio) is reminiscent of Sara and Becky in A Little Princess and, of course, Harry.
Donnie Brasco (1997) 7.7 - Mike Newell
Newell's top-rated film is a gangster thriller about an FBI agent who begins to doubt his mission the deeper he gets into infiltrating the Mafia. The film avoids mobster cliches to focus on the relationship between Joe Pistone aka Donnie Brasco (Johnny Depp) and Lefty Ruggiero (Al Pacino).
Newell didn't bring anything new to the genre, but his storytelling is neat, clever, and benefits greatly from his two leads' nuanced performances. It's easy to see parallels between Donnie Brasco and Goblet of Fire, which is very much a mystery thriller complete with crime, espionage, and multiple murders and marked the beginning of a shift in tone for the series.
Gravity (2013) 7.7 - Alfonso Cuarón
Cuarón's blockbuster hit Gravity won him his first Academy Awards, in the categories for Best Achievement in Directing and Film Editing and was nominated for Best Picture. In it, a scientist stranded in space who feels removed from humanity must find her way back to Earth.
At its core, Gravity is not a science fiction thriller, but a story about the painful beauty of being human. It is through her harrowing experience that Ryan (a stellar Sandra Bullock) realizes despite all she's lost and suffered, life is still worth living. Though it is doubtful Cuarón was thinking about HP when he wrote the screenplay, Ryan's arc has similarities to Harry's in Deathly Hallows.
Children Of Men (2006) 7.9 - Alfonso Cuarón
Children of Men is Cuarón's first project after Prisoner of Azkaban; the two films have the same rating on IMDb. The dystopian action thriller that takes place in an infertile society concerns a band of activists who attempt to save a pregnant asylum-seeker.
Cuarón used his experience working on Harry Potter, with its action set pieces, large cast, and big budget to create this masterpiece, often noted for its incredibly complex single-shots. In all his films, the director ingeniously uses the background (like in the PoA Leaky Cauldron scene) to give audiences clues about the world of the story and infusing his work with a rich, detailed, and varied perspective.