HBO Max’s interest in a Harry Potter TV series has been confirmed by chief content officer Casey Bloys. A recent report claimed that Warner Bros. was looking for writers and production talent to develop an original streaming show set in J. K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, though the company quickly denied any such project being in progress.
Harry Potter fans have called for a live-action series for years, especially after the lukewarm response to the Fantastic Beasts films failed to satisfy as the franchise’s next major chapter. Many ideas for Harry Potter spinoff stories have been tossed around, from “Harry the Auror,” to a Draco Malfoy series, to a prequel series starring Jude Law’s young Dumbledore. From the sound of it, all of those and more are probably still on the table.
Speaking with Deadline, HBO and HBO Max chief content officer Bloys has now confirmed that a Harry Potter series is likely in the cards for HBO Max, though no concrete work has been done on it as of yet, and no writers are attached.
“I wouldn’t even say it’s embryonic at this point. There’s nothing in development, but I think it’s fair to say across Game of Thrones, Harry Potter and DC, these are franchises that WarnerMedia enjoys and it’s a big advantage for us so there’s always going to be interest in doing something of quality from those properties.”
What does that all mean? Most likely, a Harry Potter TV series will be developed for HBO Max in the near future, but it may be some time before it moves past its current exploratory state into actual planning and pre-production. That unfortunately means it will be a while before it comes out. Still, the promise that Warner Bros. is indeed in the very early process is promising, even if there aren’t any hard details to latch onto yet.
As Disney+ continues to build traction in the streaming world with The Mandalorian and WandaVision, Warner Bros. will need to dive deep into its strongest franchises to compete. Harry Potter is undeniably its most popular, and the eventual series could be a huge boon to HBO Max as it keeps trying to gain ground in the market. Of course, any Wizarding World stories will need the creative approval of J. K. Rowling, which could be more of a hindrance to speedy development than an aid. For now, fans will have to keep waiting for more news of HBO Max’s Harry Potter series.
Source: Deadline
