Harry Potter is a billion dollar franchise created by the one and only JK Rowling. Her series has seen an incredible amount of popularity and success over the decades since its release, including eight brilliant movies, multiple theme parks, several video games, and countless merchandise all dedicated to the magical universe formed from Rowling's impossibly imaginative mind.
With a mind as imaginative as Rowling's, it's no question that the Potter creator had countless ideas when it came to the outcome of the series, some that were kept as canon in the books and others that never made the cut. Some ideas and concepts for Harry Potter were too cool not to be mentioned to the world, so without further ado, here are some awesome Harry Potter concepts and ideas that never came to life.
A ROMANCE BETWEEN HARRY AND HERMIONE
For the most part, Harry and Hermione seem a lot more like siblings than potential lovers, but JK Rowling at one point started to feel for the two as a couple rather than platonic BFFs. In the scene during Deathly Hallows when Ron leaves the two in the tent in the woods, JK Rowling felt as though there was a spark between the two friends and even stated in an interview how she thought maybe Harry and Hermione would be better off together.
Although this thought might have lingered in Rowling's mind, she ultimately said someone as uptight as Hermione would need to be with someone as funny and laid back as Ron. She thinks with the right amount of wizard's couples counseling, the two would be able to make things work just fine. We think so too!
HERMIONE'S SISTER
JK Rowling originally planned for the brightest witch of her age to have a younger sister that would arrive at Hogwarts later on in the books. By the time the fifth Harry Potter book Order of the Phoenix was released, the author of the Potter series thought it was much too late in the game to add a miniature Granger into the mix. It makes us wonder what Hermione's baby sis could've been like. Would she be just like Hermione with bushy hair and a genius mind or would they be total opposites? Would Hermione's sister be embarrassed by her older sibling for being such a know-it-all? Would she develop a crush on Harry, or worse, Ron? These are all questions we will most likely never have answered, but it would be super cool to see Hermione interact with someone of her own flesh and blood.
DUDLEY'S WIZARD SON
JK Rowling had originally planned for Harry's spoiled cousin to end up having a son or daughter with magical blood. This was to be included in the Deathly Hallows epilogue where Dudley Dursley would send off his magical offspring to Hogwarts along with the rest of the parents on platform 9 3/4. This is a pretty awesome twist considering how Dudley has basically been the anti-magical character throughout the series, wearing his muggle identity like a badge of honor since book one.
Although Dudley and Harry share a sweet moment of redemption in the last book where Dudley states how he doesn't think Potter is "a waste of space", Rowling must have wanted to take their connection a step further by making his kid magical. Ultimately, she scrapped this idea because Rowling felt as though it would be impossible for anyone with Vernon Dursley's DNA to be of magical descent.
DEATH OF MAIN CHARACTERS
At the end of the day, we are glad that no one from the golden trio was killed off because Harry, Ron, and Hermione were huge staples of our childhood. Yet despite how devastating it would've been to have one of the three main characters die, JK Rowling had at one point decided to go all George RR Martin by coming up with the idea of killing off one of the main characters- particularly, Ron Weasley. Although fans would have been enraged at the death of the boy with the red a hair and hand-me-down robes, it would certainly earn Rowling some street cred a-la Game of Thrones where no one is safe regardless of how essential of a character they are to the plot.
A CHAPTER FROM DRACO'S POV
JK Rowling had originally planned for there to be a chapter of the books through Draco Malfoy's perspective set at the Malfoy Manor. It would have been insanely interesting to be a fly on the wall at the pureblood household and listen in on all of their thoughts on Harry Potter and his friends.
Ultimately this added chapter would be a refreshing break from the famous boy wizard's point of view and it would most likely help us sympathize more with Malfoy in order to gain more perspective on what caused him to be the mean-spirited boy that he grew up to become. Perhaps we would even get more information on his most vulnerable thoughts during this chapter, potentially including his jealousy towards Harry Potter. As cool as this chapter would be, it might remove the mysteriousness of Draco Malfoy that makes him so intriguing as a character.
DRACO COULD'VE HELPED HARRY IN THE FINAL BATTLE
Originally, the Potter films had planned to add a scene in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows that would work to redeem Harry's Slytherin nemesis. After Harry pretended to play dead in the final battle while lying in Hagrid's arms, we all remember that classic moment when he jumped out alive to everyone's surprise. After this moment, Draco was supposed to hand Harry his own wand in order to help Harry defeat Voldemort once and for all. This moment would have completely changed our perspective on Draco Malfoy and we're slightly disappointed that it was never included.
PETUNIA COULD HAVE HAD A BETTER SENDOFF
We all remember that essential moment in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when Harry is saying his final goodbyes to the Dursleys after living with them all his life. You'd think in these final moments at least one of Harry's guardians over the years would give him the smallest bit of warmth during their last interaction or potentially apologize due to how poorly they treated Harry over the years. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, there was a deleted scene in the films where Aunt Petunia tells Harry in a somber tone, "You didn't just lose a Mother that night in Godric's Hollow, you know. I lost a sister..."
Some fans were upset that this scene was cut from the film because they believed it made Petunia more of a humanized character rather than the two-dimensional woman we all know her to be. Perhaps she deserved more, and fans would have liked to have been given the chance to see multiple sides to her character.
3. GHOSTS ORIGINALLY SORTED WIZARDS
Before JK Rowling had the idea of the famous sorting hat to decide which house each witch and wizard would be sorted into while during their time at Hogwarts, she had originally made it so a panel of ghosts at Hogwarts would judge which house every student at the school of witchcraft and wizardry was meant to reside in. It would be interesting to hear these ghosts converse together over which house they think is the best fit for each character. Do you think they would put you in Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin?
A SLYTHERIN WEASLEY?
It's hard to believe that there could be a Weasley roaming the wizarding world who isn't a Gryffindor. All Weasleys are Gryffindors and it's practically tradition that each red-haired member of the large family would be sorted into the house known for its courage. Yet JK Rowling originally intended for there to be a Weasley cousin at Hogwarts named Mafalda who was not only a Slytherin but was also Hermione's ultimate intellectual competitor. How cool is that? Hermione deserves to have someone around to provide her with some intellectual stimulation and even cooler that it would be a Weasley Slytherin to do it. Despite their rivalry, the two would probably respect each other as intellectual equals, further allowing Gryffindors and Slytherins to put aside their differences.
A HARRY POTTER MUSICAL CREATED BY WHO?
True Potter fans are familiar with the hilarious A Very Potter Musical starring Darren Criss, but this wasn't the first time a Potter Musical was suggested. Believe it or not, the "king of pop" Michael Jackson wanted to create a Harry Potter Musical back at the height of Harry Potter's fame. JK Rowling had quickly refused this suggestion, which is probably for the best, but it's still pretty awesome to imagine Harry Potter scenes being formed into classic Michael Jackson songs. We can picture a potential version of "Thriller" with Death Eaters rather than zombies, and perhaps a version of "Bad" with Severus Snape which features the potion's master in a leather jacket and diamond-studded glove.