Harry Potter fans are eagerly awaiting the newest installment to the Wizarding World franchise, the video game Hogwarts Legacy, which will be released on February 10, 2023. The game will be set at Hogwarts during the late 1800s, so the story will be completely independent of Harry's story in the original books.
The game being set so many years before any previous installments allows the developers some freedom from being criticized for diverting from book canon. The same cannot be said for the Harry Potter movies, which, like all screen adaptations, were forced to change many details about Harry's adventures. One of the most frustrating of these was Harry's relationship with Ginny, which looked nothing like their romance in the books. Fans have been very vocal about their qualms with Harry and Ginny in the movies, leading many to create some hilarious memes.
The Ginny & Harry Shoelace Scene Just Hurt
Part of what made Harry and Ginny's relationship so great in the books is that they started out very organically. With as much time as Harry would spend at the Burrow, it was difficult for the two not to become friends. They teased each other and joked like family, and over time, Harry started to realize that his feelings for her went much further. Of course, this was only possible once Ginny let herself relax around Harry and really let her natural, cool personality shine through.
However, this side of Ginny is never shown in the Harry Potter movies. While Ginny eventually does stop running away whenever she sees Harry, she never shows much of who she is. For a majority of the films, she is simply a background character. Then, when the two were suddenly thrown together, it was with awkward scenes of Ginny tying Harry's shoe or weirdly trying to feed him desserts while Ron squeezed between them. The connection just couldn't compare.
Harry's One True Love Is The Expelliarmus Charm
Harry faced a lot of responsibility compared to the typical teenager. So, while a lot of high schoolers are focused on their dating lives, Harry is more concerned with how he is going to survive to adulthood. This is true for both the books and the movies, but with the limited details regarding Harry's relationships, the films put far more focus on Harry's primary goals.
Ultimately, Harry just wasn't portrayed as a romantic individual in the movies. While some fans might argue about whether he should have been with Ginny or Hermione, it's clear that his one true love in the films was his precious Disarming Charm.
Harry and Ginny Were So Much Better In The Books
Since fantasy books have the capability of sharing with audiences exactly what is going on in characters' minds, it is near impossible for a screen adaptation to include all the same details. In addition, movies are forced to tell a story in a much shorter amount of time since most novels can take 10-plus hours to read.
For this reason, Harry and Ginny's relationship was never going to be quite as good in the movies as it was in the books. In Half-Blood Prince, readers experience all of Ginny's quotes that should have been in the movies. They also watch Harry slowly realize he had feelings for Ginny, who had become his good friend. So, when they finally had their first kiss in the heat of winning the Quidditch Cup, readers were celebrating right along with them. The same cannot be said for the Room of Requirement kiss in the movie.
Movie Hermione Was Better Than Movie Ginny
In the Half-Blood Prince book, Hermione and Harry's friendship became clearly defined to readers. She always knew exactly what Harry was thinking and feeling and became the best advocate in his journey to finally ending up with Ginny. Their brotherly-sisterly bond was so strong, and fans loved it.
While Hermione was much the same with Harry in the movies, the lack of chemistry written in for Harry and Ginny made the connection between the two friends seem far more appealing, leading many to believe that Harry and Hermione were endgame. Comforting cuddles in Half-Blood Prince and sweet gestures of spontaneous dancing in Deathly Hallows Part 1 felt far more romantic than awkward kisses in the Room of Requirement ever could.
George Weasley Was The Best Part Of Harry & Ginny's Relationship
The Harry Potter books contained several good kissing scenes for Harry and Ginny, but the movies included only awkward moments instead. The only scene of this kind that didn't make audiences cringe was before Bill and Fleur's wedding in Deathly Hallows Part 1 when the two kissed after discussing how important romance is in times of war.
However, this singular good kiss was quickly overshadowed by George, who snuck through the background with a toothbrush sticking out of his ear and stopped to give Harry a cheeky wink. So, in the sea of awkward scenes constructed for the Harry Potter love birds, George was really the one who stood out.
Book Ginny Is Better Than Movie Ginny
When Ginny's character was introduced in Chamber of Secrets, she could hardly talk if Harry was in the same room. However, the books revealed that over the years, she started to gain some confidence and began just acting like herself. It was then that audiences saw that she was as funny as Fred and George and likely the cleverest of the Weasleys.
Unfortunately, the movies never captured these qualities in Ginny, so audiences never got a chance to really get to know her. Ultimately, Harry Potter movie Ginny ended up rather unpopular with audiences. This is a major part of why her chemistry with Harry seemed so off in the films; her character just hadn't been fully developed, so their romance felt superficial.
What Happened To Ginny?
Several characters wound up completely cut from the Harry Potter movies. Two prominent examples of this are Peeves and Winky, who both would have required expensive special effects to include. However, in the case of Ginny, it was only her personality that was left out.
This is especially frustrating because priority was given to some of the most unnecessary additions to the Harry Potter movies instead of character development. Perhaps if less time had been spent on Death Eaters attacking the Burrow (which made no sense in canon), Ginny's fun, exciting identity could have been given a little bit more screen time.
Harry Potter The Distracted Boyfriend
Harry certainly had a lot going on throughout the series. He was thrust into the role of the Chosen One and therefore suffered all the consequences of being in the public eye. If Voldemort wasn't attacking him, then the Ministry of Magic or his fellow students surely were.
However, Book Ginny's fiery personality was enough to make Harry focus on something else other than his problems. She made him feel like a regular teenager. This made their happy ending together all the more satisfying since Harry finally had the family that he had always wanted. Movie Ginny just didn't achieve this same effect.