‘Harry Potter’ TV series: What you need to know about HBO Max adaptation

A new generation of wizards! HBO has announced a new Harry Potter series was officially in the works.

During the Warner Bros. Discovery presentation in April 2023, the network revealed they were moving forward on a TV adaptation of JK Rowling‘s iconic novels for their streaming service Max. (Max is the new service that combines HBO Max and Discovery+ into one platform.)

“We are excited to give the public the opportunity to discover Hogwarts in a whole new way,” Casey Bloomssaid chairman and CEO of HBO & Max Content in the presentation. “Harry Potter is a cultural phenomenon and it is clear that there is such an enduring love and thirst for the Wizarding World. In partnership with Warner Bros. Television and JK Rowling, this new Max Original series delves deep into each of the iconic books fans have loved over the years.”

The series follows the author’s books in a “ten-year series” with an all-new cast. Rowling, for her part, will serve as an executive producer.

“Max’s commitment to preserving the integrity of my books is important to me, and I look forward to being a part of this new edit that allows for a level of depth and detail only offered by a feature-length television series.” said the Briton. said writer in a statement alongside the announcement of the new series.

Despite her success with the franchise, Rowling has found herself in hot water over the years. The British, who wrote the seven young adult fantasy novels from 1997 to 2007, has often made headlines for her apparently transphobic comments. In June 2020, the philanthropist shared multiple posts on Twitter that appeared to criticize the trans community, to which she received backlash.

Stars from the original Harry Potter movie franchise began to speak out against the creator for her controversial comments, including stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson And Rupert Grintwho played Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley respectively.

“I fully support the trans community,” Grint said in a statement Us weekly at the time. “Trans women are women. Trans men are men. We should all have the right to live with love and without judgment.”

In 2021, Rowling posted another series of anti-trans comments around the same time the trailer for the new Fantastic beasts movie – which is based on another Rowling novel set in the Harry Potter universe – fallen.

Amid the controversy, Rowling did not participate with the cast in the Harry Potter 20th Birthday reunion special – which premiered in 2022 on HBO Max. However, she was seen in archive footage from 2019.

Keep scrolling to learn more about the Harry Potter shows: