Who directed the first Harry Potter film?
J. K. Rowling
In October 1998, Warner Bros. purchased the film rights to the first two novels for a seven-figure sum. A film adaptation of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was released on 16 November 2001, and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" on 15 November 2002. Both films were directed by Chris Columbus. The film version of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" was released on 4 June 2004, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. The fourth film, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", was directed by Mike Newell, and released on 18 November 2005. The film of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" was released on 11 July 2007. David Yates directed, and Michael Goldenberg wrote the screenplay, having taken over the position from Steve Kloves. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" was released on 15 July 2009. David Yates directed again, and Kloves returned to write the script. Warner Bros. filmed the final instalment of the series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", in two segments, with part one being released on 19 November 2010 and part two being released on 15 July 2011. Yates directed both films.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (soundtrack)
The score for "Deathly Hallows – Part 1" is composed by Golden Globe award-winning and Academy Award-winning film composer Alexandre Desplat. Desplat follows John Williams, Patrick Doyle, and Nicholas Hooper in composing music for the "Harry Potter" series. Williams composed the first three films, Doyle scored the fourth film, while Hooper worked on the soundtracks for the fifth and sixth films. Desplat stated that he would compose until September 2010, with the soundtrack being released on 16 November 2010, three days before the film's release date. A three-disc "Limited Edition Collector's Box Set" was also released on 21 December 2010.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
In 1999, Rowling sold the film rights of the first four "Harry Potter" books to Warner Bros. for a reported £1 million ($1.65 million in 1999). Rowling demanded that the principal cast be kept strictly British but allowed for the casting of Irish actors such as the late Richard Harris as Dumbledore and of foreign actors as characters of the same nationalities in later books. After extensive casting, filming began in September 2000 at Leavesden Film Studios and in London, with production ending in July 2001. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was released in London on 14 November 2001. Reviewers' comments were positive, as reflected by an 80% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and by a score of 64% at Metacritic, representing "generally favourable reviews".
Hercule Poirot
Austin Trevor debuted the role of Poirot on screen in the 1931 British film "Alibi". The film was based on the stage play. Trevor reprised the role of Poirot twice, in "Black Coffee" and "Lord Edgware Dies". Trevor said once that he was probably cast as Poirot simply because he could do a French accent. Leslie S. Hiscott directed the first two films, and Henry Edwards took over for the third.
John Williams
In the new millennium, Williams was asked to score the film adaptations of J. K. Rowling's widely successful book series, "Harry Potter". He went on to score the film franchise's first three installments. As with his "Superman" theme, the most important theme from Williams's scores for the "Harry Potter" films, dubbed "Hedwig's Theme", has been used in the fourth through eighth films ("Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2"), scored by Patrick Doyle ("Goblet of Fire"), Nicholas Hooper ("Order of the Phoenix" and "Half-Blood Prince") and Alexandre Desplat ("Deathly Hallows"). Like the main themes from "Jaws", "Star Wars", "Superman", and "Indiana Jones", fans have come to identify the "Harry Potter" films with Williams's original compositions. Williams was asked to return to score the film franchise's final installment, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2", but director David Yates stated that "their schedules simply did not align" as he would have had to provide Williams with a rough cut of the film sooner than was possible.
Harry Potter (film series)
In 2000, after a seven-month search, lead actor Daniel Radcliffe was discovered by producer David Heyman and writer Steve Kloves seated just behind them in a theatre. In Heyman's own words, "There sitting behind me was this boy with these big blue eyes. It was Dan Radcliffe. I remember my first impressions: He was curious and funny and so energetic. There was real generosity too, and sweetness. But at the same time he was really voracious and with hunger for knowledge of whatever kind."
Harry Potter
"Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" is a two-part West End stage play. It was written by Jack Thorne, based on a story by J. K. Rowling, Thorne and director John Tiffany. The play opened on 30 July 2016 at the Palace Theatre, London, England. The script was released on 31 July 2016. The story is set nineteen years after the ending of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" and follows Harry Potter, now a Ministry of Magic employee, and his younger son Albus Severus Potter. The play's official synopsis was released on 23 October 2015:
Harry Potter (film series)
Also in 2000, the then unknown British actors Emma Watson and Rupert Grint were selected from thousands of auditioning children to play the roles of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, respectively. Their only previous acting experience was in school plays. Grint was eleven years old and Watson ten at the time they were cast.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
The film stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Principal photography began on 19 February 2009, and was completed on 12 June 2010, with reshoots taking place in December 2010, more than ten years after filming started on the first instalment of the series. "Part 2" was released in 2D, 3-D and IMAX cinemas worldwide from 13–15 July 2011, and is the only "Harry Potter" film to be released in 3-D.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a 2009 fantasy film directed by David Yates and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on J. K. Rowling's 2005 novel of the same name. The film, which is the sixth instalment in the "Harry Potter" film series, was written by Steve Kloves and produced by David Heyman and David Barron. The story follows Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts as he receives a mysterious textbook, falls in love, and attempts to retrieve a memory that holds the key to Lord Voldemort's downfall.
Lionel Wigram (film producer)
Wigram was named a senior vice president of production at Warner Bros. in November 2000. As a studio executive, he was responsible for buying the Harry Potter book series for the studio, as well as overseeing the eight film series. In addition, Wigram also championed such films as "Three Kings", "Charlotte Gray" and "The Big Tease". He later transitioned from executive to independent producer with a first look deal at Warner Bros. During his tenure, Wigram produced the 2009 hit film "Sherlock Holmes". Wigram also co-wrote the story for the film. He was also a producer on the sequel, "". Wigram was also executive producer of the last four Harry Potter films, as well as "August Rush" and "".
Nicolas Aithadi
Aithadi began his career from low-budget films to blockbusters such as "Troy", "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and four "Harry Potter" films. For "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1", he was nominated for a BAFTA Award and an Oscar.
Miss Potter
Miss Potter is a 2006 biographical drama film directed by Chris Noonan. It is based on the life of children's author and illustrator Beatrix Potter, and combines stories from her own life with animated sequences featuring characters from her stories, such as Peter Rabbit. Scripted by Richard Maltby Jr., the director of the Tony Award-winning Broadway revue, "Fosse", the film stars Renée Zellweger in the title role; Ewan McGregor as her publisher and fiancé, Norman Warne; and Lloyd Owen as solicitor William Heelis. Emily Watson stars as Warne's sister, Millie. Lucy Boynton also stars as the young Beatrix Potter and Justin McDonald appears as the young William Heelis. It was filmed in St. Peter's Square Hammersmith, Cecil Court, Osterley Park, Covent Garden, the Isle of Man, Scotland and the Lake District.
Harry Potter (film series)
Director David Yates stated that he wanted John Williams to return to the series for the final installment, but their schedules did not align due to the urgent demand for a rough cut of the film. The final recording sessions of "Harry Potter" took place on 27 May 2011 at Abbey Road Studios with the London Symphony Orchestra, orchestrator Conrad Pope, and composer Alexandre Desplat.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 is a 2010 fantasy film directed by David Yates and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the first of two cinematic parts based on J. K. Rowling's 2007 novel of the same name and features an ensemble cast. The film, which is the seventh and penultimate instalment in the "Harry Potter" film series, was written by Steve Kloves and produced by David Heyman, David Barron, and Rowling.
A Very Potter Musical
The musical was performed in April 9–11, 2009 on the University of Michigan campus and is currently available to watch online. It was produced by StarKid Productions and directed by Matt Lang. The musical starred Darren Criss as Harry Potter, Joey Richter as Ron Weasley, Bonnie Gruesen as Hermione Granger, Jaime Lyn Beatty as Ginny Weasley, Lauren Lopez as Draco Malfoy, Brian Rosenthal as Quirinus Quirrell and Joe Walker as Lord Voldemort. In late June 2009, the group put the entire musical up on YouTube and it became a viral video, obtaining millions of views.
Ami Trivedi
In 2001, Trivedi gave her voice to Daniel Radcliffe's role as "Harry Potter" in the Hindi-dubbed version of the first film of the "Harry Potter Series". Since the second film of the series, her brother, Karan Trivedi took over as the second Hindi dubbing voice for Harry Potter, until it was passed to Rajesh Kava after the fifth film. Since then, she has lent voices in various animated and live-action films like "The Incredibles" and "Barbie Mariposa". She has dubbed for some Gujarati films also.
J. K. Rowling
The first four, sixth, seventh, and eighth films were scripted by Steve Kloves; Rowling assisted him in the writing process, ensuring that his scripts did not contradict future books in the series. She told Alan Rickman (Severus Snape) and Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid) certain secrets about their characters before they were revealed in the books. Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) asked her if Harry died at any point in the series; Rowling answered him by saying, "You have a death scene", thereby not explicitly answering the question. Director Steven Spielberg was approached to direct the first film, but dropped out. The press has repeatedly claimed that Rowling played a role in his departure, but Rowling stated that she had no say in who directed the films and would not have vetoed Spielberg. Rowling's first choice for the director had been Monty Python member Terry Gilliam, but Warner Bros. wanted a family-friendly film and chose Columbus.
Harry Potter (film series)
Warner Bros. had initially planned to release the first film over the 4 July 2001 weekend, making for such a short production window that several of the originally proposed directors had withdrawn themselves from contention. Eventually, due to time constraints, the date was put back to 16 November 2001.
Daniel Radcliffe
Radcliffe first expressed a desire to act at the age of five, and in December 1999, aged 10, he made his acting debut in BBC One's televised two-part adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel "David Copperfield", portraying the title character as a young boy. He was educated at three independent schools for boys: Redcliffe School, a day school in Chelsea's Redcliffe Square, Sussex House School, a day school in Chelsea's Cadogan Square, and the City of London School, a day school on the North Bank of the River Thames in London's financial district (known as the City of London). Attending school became difficult for Radcliffe after the release of the first "Harry Potter" film, with some fellow pupils becoming hostile, though he says it was people just trying to "have a crack at the kid that plays Harry Potter" rather than jealousy.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
Steve Kloves, the screenwriter of the first four "Potter" films, had other commitments. Michael Goldenberg, who was considered to pen the first film in the series, filled in and wrote the script.
List of supporting Harry Potter characters
Jamie Waylett portrayed Crabbe and Joshua Herdman played Goyle in the first six films of the "Harry Potter" film series; only Herdman appears in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2", with Crabbe's role in the plot being replaced by Goyle, and Goyle being replaced by Blaise Zabini.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is a 2007 fantasy film directed by David Yates and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on J. K. Rowling's 2003 novel of the same name. The fifth instalment in the "Harry Potter" film series, it was written by Michael Goldenberg (making this the only film in the series not to be scripted by Steve Kloves) and produced by David Heyman and David Barron. The story follows Harry Potter's fifth year at Hogwarts as the Ministry of Magic is in denial of Lord Voldemort's return.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
The film was released in theatres in the United Kingdom and the United States on 15 November 2002. It became a critical and commercial success, grossing $879 million at the box office worldwide. It was the second highest-grossing film of 2002 behind "". The movie was nominated for many awards including the BAFTA Award for Best Production Design, Best Sound, and Best Special Visual Effects. It was followed by six sequels, beginning with "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" in 2004 and ending with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2" in 2011, nearly ten years after the first film's release.
Alfonso Cuarón
In 2004, Cuarón directed the third film in the successful "Harry Potter" series, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban". Cuarón faced criticism from some "Harry Potter" fans for his approach to the film. At the time of the movie's release, however, author J. K. Rowling, who had seen and loved Cuarón's film "Y Tu Mamá También", said that it was her personal favorite from the series so far. Critically, the film was also better received than the first two instalments, with some critics remarking its new tone and for being the first "Harry Potter" film to truly capture the essence of the novels.
Peter Weir
Weir's first American film was the successful thriller "Witness" (1985), the first of two films he made with Harrison Ford, about a boy who sees the murder of an undercover police officer by corrupt coworkers and has to be hidden away in his Amish community to protect him. Weir directed Ford in his only performance to receive an Academy Award nomination, while child star Lukas Haas also received wide praise for his debut film performance. "Witness" also earned Weir his first Academy Award nomination as Best Director, and was his first of several films to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, it later won 2 for Best Film Editing & Best Original Screenplay.
Mike L. Murphy
Murphy's first film as director was his 2004 "Night of the Broccoli", about a man whose dinner vegetables exact a revenge. This was followed by his 2005 film "Get Lost", and then by his 2006 film "Rose", which premiered at the Rhode Island International Film Festival, and won 1st place for cinematography. His works include the films "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", "", and "Iron Man". In 2010 he directed the animated sequences for 20th Century Fox's "Diary of a Wimpy Kid". In 2011 he was the director and producer of the Young Storytellers Foundation "Bohemian Dream Party", a charity event to benefit arts education for Los Angeles-based youth. He also redesigned "Mrs. Butterworth" and directed her animation.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
The film stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, with Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, respectively, reprising roles as Harry's best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. It is the sequel to "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and is followed by the concluding entry, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2".
Every Single Word
The coverage of POC representation in the Harry Potter series by Marron resulted in some controversy. Some fans were upset that the videos pointed out the low representation, "5 minutes and 40 seconds long – out of 1,207 total minutes of run-time" and the whitewashing of the character Lavender Brown from the black actresses that had played her in the first five movies to the "blond woman" from the sixth movie on, when the character has a heavier involvement and lines in the plot. After doing videos on a number of popular movies and series, Marron decided to do a series of videos on every Academy Award for Best Picture winner since the first award in 1929, in chronological order so that any differences in POC casting can be seen in relation to historical time period. Marron also created a series of videos looking at all the films directed by Nancy Meyers, six films in total. He found that POC representation across all of the films only made up 0.7% of run-time and that most of the characters were not named and were presented as working service jobs.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
The film is the first of the series to receive a PG-13 certificate in the US, and a 12A in the UK, and stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. It is the sequel to "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" and is followed by "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix".
Wizarding World
David Heyman and his company Heyday Films have produced every film in the Wizarding World. Chris Columbus and Mark Radcliffe served as producers on "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", David Barron began producing the films with the 2007 film "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" and ending with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2" in 2011, and Rowling produced the final two films in the "Harry Potter" series. Heyman, Rowling, Steve Kloves and Lionel Wigram have produced both films in the "Fantastic Beasts" series. The films are written and directed by several individuals and feature large, often ensemble, casts. Many of the actors, including Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson and Eddie Redmayne, star in numerous films. Soundtrack albums have been released for each of the films. The franchise also includes a stage production, a digital publication, a video game label and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter–themed areas at several Universal Parks & Resorts amusement parks around the world.
Harry Potter (film series)
In addition, the American Film Institute recognised the entire series with a Special Award at the American Film Institute Awards in 2011. Special awards "are given to outstanding achievements in the moving image that do not fit into AFI's criteria for the other honorees." In its press release, the Institute referred to the films as "a landmark series; eight films that earned the trust of a generation who wished for the beloved books of J.K. Rowling to come to life on the silver screen. The collective wizardry of an epic ensemble gave us the gift of growing older with Harry, Ron and Hermione as the magic of Hogwarts sprung from the films and into the hearts and minds of Muggles around the world."
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling. The first novel in the "Harry Potter" series and Rowling's debut novel, it follows Harry Potter, a young wizard who discovers his magical heritage on his eleventh birthday, when he receives a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry makes close friends and a few enemies during his first year at the school, and with the help of his friends, Harry faces an attempted comeback by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed Harry's parents, but failed to kill Harry when he was just 15 months old.
Emma Watson
In 1999, casting began for "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (released as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States), the film adaptation of British author J. K. Rowling's best-selling novel. Casting agents found Watson through her Oxford theatre teacher, and producers were impressed by her confidence. After eight auditions, producer David Heyman told Watson and fellow applicants Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint that they had been cast for the roles of the school friends Hermione Granger, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, respectively. Rowling supported Watson from her first screen test.
Daniel Radcliffe
Born and raised in London, Radcliffe made his acting debut at 10 years of age in BBC One's 1999 television film "David Copperfield", followed by his cinematic debut in 2001's "The Tailor of Panama". At age 11, he was cast as Potter in the series' first film "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", and starred in the series for 10 years, starring in the lead role in all eight films culminating with the final film in the series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2", released in 2011. Radcliffe became one of the highest paid actors in the world during the filming of the Potter films, earned worldwide fame, popularity, and critical acclaim for his role, and received many accolades for his performance in the series.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
The first review of the film came three weeks before the official release. Paul Dergarabedian of Hollywood.com ranked the film with "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy and called the film a "possible Oscar contender". He highly praised the performance of Sir Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman and Daniel Radcliffe. He commented, ""Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" is a tour-de-force that combines style and substance, special effects and heart and most importantly great performances from all of the actors young and not-so-young". Another early review came from the UK tabloid "The Sun", whose anonymous reviewer called the film "masterful" and "very emotional". The reviewer praised David Yates's directing and called Jim Broadbent's portrayal of Horace Slughorn "perfect". Devin Faraci of Chud.com called the film not only the best Harry Potter film yet, but also one of the best films of the year.
Harry Potter (film series)
All the directors have been supportive of each other. Chris Columbus praised the character development in the films, while Alfonso Cuarón admired the "quiet poetry" of David Yates' films. Mike Newell noted that each director had a different heroism, and David Yates views the first four films "respectfully and enjoy[s] them." Daniel Radcliffe said Yates "took the charm of the films that Chris made and the visual flair of everything that Alfonso did and the thoroughly British, bombastic nature of the film directed by Mike Newell" and added "his own sense" of realism.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
On 26 August 2010, director David Yates, producers David Heyman and David Barron, and with Warner Bros. president Alan F. Horn attended a test screening for "Deathly Hallows – Part 1" in Chicago. The unfinished film gained rave reviews from test screeners, some of whom labelled it "amazing and dark" and "the most perfect "Harry Potter" film". Others expressed that the film faithfully adapted the novel, which led to an inheritance of the "book's own problems".
Harry Potter
Columbus declined to direct "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", only acting as producer. Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón took over the job, and after shooting in 2003, the film was released on 4 June 2004. Due to the fourth film beginning its production before the third's release, Mike Newell was chosen as the director for "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", released on 18 November 2005. Newell became the first British director of the series, with television director David Yates following suit after he was chosen to helm "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". Production began in January 2006 and the film was released the following year in July 2007. After executives were "really delighted" with his work on the film, Yates was selected to direct "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", which was released on 15 July 2009.
In March 2008, Warner Bros. President and COO Alan F. Horn announced that the final instalment in the series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", would be released in two cinematic parts: "Part 1" on 19 November 2010 and "Part 2" on 15 July 2011. Production of both parts started in February 2009, with the final day of principal photography taking place on 12 June 2010.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
The world premiere of the film took place in London, England on 6 November 2005. One of the features of the premiere was an animatronic, fire-breathing Hungarian Horntail. The 40-foot-long dragon, used during the scene where Hagrid leads Harry into the forest a night before the first task, was designed and built by the film's special effects supervisor John Richardson and creature effects & makeup supervisor Nick Dudman.
Harry Potter (film series)
Tim Burke, the visual effects supervisor of the series, said of the production on "Harry Potter", "It was this huge family; I think there were over 700 people working at Leavesden, an industry in itself." David Heyman said, "When the first film opened, no way did I think we'd make eight films. That didn't seem feasible until after we'd done the fourth." Nisha Parti, the production consultant on the first film, said that Heyman "made the first film very much the way he felt the studio Warner Bros. wanted to make it." After the film's success, Heyman was given "more freedom".
Production of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Production of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the 2010/2011 two-film finale of the "Harry Potter" film series, began in 2009. Both Part 1 and Part 2 were directed by David Yates, written by Steve Kloves, and form the screen adaptation of the novel of the same name by J. K. Rowling. The picture was produced by Rowling, alongside David Heyman and David Barron. It was originally set to be released as one, but due to its long running time, Warner Bros. Pictures divided the film into two parts.
Nicholas Hooper
His highest-profile score is for "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", for which he reuinted with old friend director David Yates, with whom he had worked before on "The Tichborne Claimant", "The Way We Live Now", "State of Play", "The Young Visiters" and "The Girl in the Café". This was Hooper's first work on a blockbuster film. Hooper was chosen again by Yates for the following "Harry Potter" film, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", for which he was nominated for a Grammy. However, he chose not to return for the final two installments.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
The film opened in 4,325 cinemas (rising to 4,455 three weeks later, becoming the largest number of cinemas until "" surpassed it with the 4,468 cinemas) and grossed $58.2 million on its opening day at the top of the United States and Canadian box office, the third-highest Wednesday opening of all time behind "" and "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse". It is also the nineteenth-highest single-day gross of all time and the third-highest for a film in the "Harry Potter" franchise behind "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2"s $91.1 million and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1", which made $61.1 million. It earned an additional $46 million overseas for a worldwide total of $104 million, breaking the record for highest single-day worldwide gross, previously held by "The Dark Knight".
By 20 July, the film had taken in $158.7 million in the US and $236 million from 85 other markets, for a worldwide tally of $394.7 million. This broke the record for biggest-ever worldwide five-day opening, surpassing "Spider-Man 3"s $381 million; this makes the film the fastest to reach the $350 million mark in worldwide box office of all time. In the US, it surpassed all of its predecessors by a wide margin, achieving the sixth-largest-ever five-day opening in that country. The film held this record for two years until it was topped by "Deathly Hallows – Part 2" ($483.2 million). In the UK, the film grossed £19.75 million (equivalent to about $38.13 million), the highest opening for both the series and releases of 2009. At the end of the film's US and Canadian box office run the total ticket sales of the film were $302 million, making it the third most successful film in the franchise, after "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2" and "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", as well as the third-highest-grossing film of 2009 in these regions behind "Avatar" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen". As with all of the previous films in the franchise, "Half-Blood Prince" proved to be extremely successful globally with an estimated non-US total gross of $632.5 million, totalling approximately $934.4 million worldwide, making it the second-highest-grossing film of 2009, behind "Avatar", and the 34th-highest-grossing film of all time, unadjusted for inflation. It is the fifth-highest-grossing film in the franchise, behind "Philosopher's Stone", both parts of "Deathly Hallows", and "Order of the Phoenix".
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
Rowling insisted that the cast be kept British. Susie Figgis was appointed as casting director, working with both Columbus and Rowling in auditioning the lead roles of Harry, Ron and Hermione. Open casting calls were held for the main three roles, with only British children being considered. The principal auditions took place in three parts, with those auditioning having to read a page from the novel, then to improvise a scene of the students' arrival at Hogwarts, and finally to read several pages from the script in front of Columbus. Scenes from Columbus' script for the 1985 film "Young Sherlock Holmes" were also used in auditions. On 11 July 2000, Figgis left the production, complaining that Columbus did not consider any of the thousands of children they had auditioned "worthy". On 8 August 2000, the virtually unknown Daniel Radcliffe and newcomers Rupert Grint and Emma Watson were selected to play Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, respectively.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
Warner Bros. bought the film rights to the book in 1999 for a reported £1 million ($1.65 million in 1999). Production began in the United Kingdom in 2000, with Chris Columbus being chosen to create the film from a short list of directors that included Steven Spielberg and Rob Reiner. Rowling insisted that the entire cast be British and Irish, and the film was shot at Leavesden Film Studios and historic buildings around the United Kingdom.
Julie Christie
Christie made a brief cameo appearance in the third "Harry Potter" film, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" (2004), playing Madam Rosmerta. Around the same time, she also appeared in two other high-profile films: Wolfgang Petersen's "Troy" and Marc Forster's "Finding Neverland" (both 2004), playing mother to Brad Pitt and Kate Winslet, respectively. The latter performance earned Christie a BAFTA nomination as supporting actress in film.
Christie portrayed the female lead in "Away from Her" (2006), a film about a long-married Canadian couple coping with the wife's Alzheimer's disease. Based on the Alice Munro short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain", the movie was the first feature film directed by Christie's sometime co-star, Canadian actress Sarah Polley. She took the role, she says, only because Polley is her friend. Polley has said Christie liked the script but initially turned it down as she was ambivalent about acting. It took several months of persuasion by Polley before Christie finally accepted the role.
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
Jude Law was cast as Albus Dumbledore after director David Yates decided that the role should be played by a younger actor, not Michael Gambon (who played the role in six of the "Harry Potter" films). A number of other actors were considered, including Christian Bale, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Strong, and Jared Harris (son of Richard Harris, who played Dumbledore in the first two "Harry Potter" films).
John Hurt
In the first Harry Potter film, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (2001), he played Mr Ollivander, the wand-maker. He returned for the adaptation of "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", though his scenes in that film were cut. He also returned for "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Part 2". In the 2005 film "V for Vendetta", he played the role of Adam Sutler, leader of the Norsefire fascist dictatorship and in Steven Spielberg's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008) he appeared as Harold Oxley.
David Barron (film producer)
David Barron worked as a producer on "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Part 2". He previously served as a producer on "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". He was also an executive producer on both "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." Barron has worked in the entertainment industry for more than 25 years, beginning his career in commercials before moving into television and film production. In addition to his work as a producer, he has held a wide range of posts, including location manager, assistant director, production manager and production supervisor, working on such films as "The French Lieutenant's Woman", "The Killing Fields", "Revolution", "Legend", "The Princess Bride" and Franco Zeffirelli's "Hamlet".
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
The film stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. It is the sequel to "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" and is followed by "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1". Filming began on 24 September 2007, leading to the film's worldwide cinematic release on 15 July 2009, one day short of the fourth anniversary of the corresponding novel's release. The film was simultaneously released in regular cinemas and IMAX 3D everywhere except North America, where its IMAX release was delayed for two weeks.
Polly Cohen Johnsen
Johnsen re-joined Warner Bros. in 1997 as a creative executive and worked on such movies as Three Kings, The Perfect Storm and Analyze This.
She was promoted to production executive in 1998 and then to vice president, production in 1999. In 2003 she was named senior vice president, production and in 2006, executive vice president, production. As an executive, she was noted for recommending the first Harry Potter book for a potential film series, which became one of the studio's most successful franchises of all time. As a senior executive, she oversaw the Harry Potter films, Blood Diamond, I Am Legend, the Scooby Doo series, and Superman Returns, among others.
Wizarding World
In December 2013, J. K. Rowling announced that she was working on a "Harry Potter"–based play, and in June 2015 it was officially titled "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child". The two-part, West End stage play, written by British playwright Jack Thorne is based on an original story by Thorne, John Tiffany and Rowling. It is directed by Tiffany with choreography by Steven Hoggett, set design by Christine Jones, costume design by Katrina Lindsay, lighting design by Neil Austin, music by Imogen Heap, and sound design by Gareth Fry. The story begins nineteen years after the events of "Deathly Hallows" and follows Harry Potter, now a Ministry of Magic employee, and his younger son Albus Severus Potter, who is about to attend Hogwarts. On 20 December 2015, it was announced that Jamie Parker, Noma Dumezweni and Paul Thornley would play Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. The play debuted at the Palace Theatre, London on 7 June 2016 in previews, with the official opening on 30 July. The script was released in book form the day after the play's world premiere. The play opened on Broadway at the redesigned Lyric Theatre, New York City on 22 April 2018. Parker, Dumezweni, and Thornley reprised their roles on Broadway with Poppy Miller, Sam Clemmett, Alex Price, and Anthony Boyle also reprising their roles as Ginny Potter, Albus Potter, Draco Malfoy, and Scorpius Malfoy, respectively., the Wizarding World films have collectively grossed over $9.1 billion at the global box office, making it the third-highest-grossing film franchise of all time behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe films and the "Star Wars" films. All the films emerged as commercial successes with majority of the film's grossing over $790 million, and all but "Prisoner of Azkaban" and "Fantastic Beasts" at some point ranked among the ten highest-grossing films of all time. The "Harry Potter" films are the highest-grossing series based on a single property, earning over $7.7 billion at the box office; "Harry Potter" has also generated at least $3.5 billion in home video revenue, taking total consumer spending on the films to over $11 billion. "Harry Potter" also has a series average of over $1 billion per film when adjusted for inflation.
Daniel Radcliffe
The release of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (released as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States) took place in 2001. Radcliffe received a seven figure salary for the lead role, but asserted that the fee was "not that important" to him; his parents chose to invest the money for him. The film was highly popular and was met with positive reviews, and critics took notice of Radcliffe: "Radcliffe is the embodiment of every reader's imagination. It is wonderful to see a young hero who is so scholarly looking and filled with curiosity and who connects with very real emotions, from solemn intelligence and the delight of discovery to deep family longing," wrote Bob Graham of the "San Francisco Chronicle".
A year later Radcliffe starred in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", the second installment of the series. Reviewers were positive about the lead actors' performances but had polarised opinions on the movie as a whole. The 2004 release "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" was the third film in the series. Radcliffe's performance was panned by "New York Times" journalist A. O. Scott, who wrote that Watson had to carry him with her performance. Next was "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" in 2005. The film was the second-highest grossing "Harry Potter" film at that point, and Radcliffe singled out the humour as being a reason for the movie's creative success.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
In 1997, producer David Heyman searched for a children's book that could be adapted into a well-received film. He had planned to produce Diana Wynne Jones' novel "The Ogre Downstairs", but his plans fell through. His staff at Heyday Films then suggested "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", which his assistant believed was "a cool idea." Heyman pitched the idea to Warner Bros. and in 1999, Rowling sold the company the rights to the first four "Harry Potter" books for a reported £1 million (US$1,982,900). A demand Rowling made was that the principal cast be kept strictly British, nonetheless allowing for the inclusion of Irish actors such as Richard Harris as Dumbledore, and for casting of French and Eastern European actors in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" where characters from the book are specified as such. Rowling was hesitant to sell the rights because she "didn't want to give them control over the rest of the story" by selling the rights to the characters, which would have enabled Warner Bros. to make non-author-written sequels.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" premiered in London on 7 July 2009 and was released theatrically worldwide on 15 July. The film was a major commercial success, breaking the record for the biggest single-day worldwide gross. In five days the film made $394 million, breaking the record for highest five-day worldwide gross. With a total gross of $934 million, it became the 8th-highest-grossing film of all time and 2009's second-highest-grossing film (behind "Avatar"). It is currently the 49th-highest-grossing film of all time worldwide unadjusted for inflation. It is the fifth-highest-grossing film in the franchise.
List of Harry Potter cast members
Several actors of the United Kingdom and Ireland voiced or portrayed characters appearing in the "Harry Potter" film series based on the book series by J. K. Rowling. In all the films, Daniel Radcliffe played Harry Potter, Rupert Grint played Ron Weasley and Emma Watson played Hermione Granger. When they were cast only Radcliffe had previously acted in a film. Complementing them on screen are such actors as Helena Bonham Carter, Jim Broadbent, John Cleese, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Brendan Gleeson, Richard Griffiths, Richard Harris, John Hurt, Jason Isaacs, Miriam Margolyes, Helen McCrory, Gary Oldman, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, Imelda Staunton, David Thewlis, Emma Thompson, and Julie Walters, among others. Thirteen actors have appeared as the same character in all eight films of the series.
Harry Potter (film series)
Along with continuous changes in cinematographers, there have been five film editors to work in post-production on the series: Richard Francis-Bruce edited the first instalment, Peter Honess the second, Steven Weisberg the third, Mick Audsley the fourth, and Mark Day films five through eight.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
In the United States, the first five Harry Potter films were released on HD DVD and Blu-ray disc on 11 December 2007. The fourth film has since become available in numerous box sets containing the other films released in the series, including the "Harry Potter: Complete 8-Film Collection" and "Harry Potter Wizard's Collection". An Ultimate Edition of "Goblet of Fire" was released on 19 October 2010, featuring behind-the-scenes footage, trailers, additional scenes, and a feature-length special "Creating the World of Harry Potter Part 4: Sound & Music". Despite not being included in the Ultimate Edition, an extended version has been shown during certain television airings with a running time of about 167 minutes.
Wizarding World
Daniel Radcliffe confirmed he would return as Harry Potter in May 2005, with Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom), and Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) confirmed to return in November 2005. In February 2006, Helen McCrory was cast as Bellatrix Lestrange, but dropped out due to her pregnancy. In May 2006, Helena Bonham Carter was cast in her place. Ralph Fiennes reprises his role as Lord Voldemort. British television director David Yates was chosen to direct the film after "Goblet of Fire" director Newell, as well as Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Guillermo del Toro, Matthew Vaughn and Mira Nair, turned down offers. Kloves, the screenwriter of the first four Harry "Potter" films, had other commitments and Michael Goldenberg, who had been considered for screenwriter of the series' first film, filled in to write the script. Principal photography began on 7 February 2006, and concluded at the start of December 2006. Filming was put on a two-month hiatus starting in May 2006 so Radcliffe could sit his A/S Levels and Watson could sit her GCSE exams. Live-action filming took place in England and Scotland for exterior locations and at Leavesden Film Studios for interior locations. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" had its world premiere on 28 June 2007 in Tokyo, Japan, and a UK premiere on 3 July 2007 at the Odeon Leicester Square in London. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 12 July, and the United States on 11 July.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction at the 78th Academy Awards. At the 2006 Teen Choice Awards, the film won the award for Choice Movie Drama. The film won the BAFTA Award for Best Production Design, making it the first "Harry Potter" film to win at the BAFTAs.
Harry Potter influences and analogues
Fans of the comic book series "The Books of Magic", by Neil Gaiman (first published in 1990 by DC Comics) have cited similarities to the Harry Potter story. These include a dark-haired English boy with glasses, named Timothy Hunter, who discovers his potential as the most powerful wizard of the age upon being approached by magic-wielding individuals, the first of whom makes him a gift of a pet owl. Similarities led the British tabloid paper the "Daily Mirror" to claim Gaiman had made accusations of plagiarism against Rowling, which he went on the record denying, saying the similarities were either coincidence, or drawn from the same fantasy archetypes. "I thought we were both just stealing from T.H. White", he said in an interview, "very straightforward." Dylan Horrocks, writer of the "Books of Magic" spin-off "", has said they should be considered as similar works in the same genre and that both have parallels with earlier schoolboy wizards, like the "2000 AD" character Luke Kirby.
Heyday Films
Its first feature film production was "Ravenous", directed by Antonia Bird. It is the producer of the "Harry Potter" film series, based on the novels by J. K. Rowling, beginning with "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in 2001.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film)
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a 2016 fantasy film directed by David Yates. A joint British and American production, it is a spin-off and prequel to the "Harry Potter" film series, and is produced and written by J. K. Rowling in her screenwriting debut, inspired by her 2001 guide book of the same name. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jon Voight, Carmen Ejogo, and Colin Farrell. It is the first instalment in the "Fantastic Beasts" film series, and ninth overall in the Wizarding World franchise, that began with the "Harry Potter" films.
Wizarding World
The first film in the Wizarding World was "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (2001), which was followed by seven "Harry Potter" sequels, beginning with "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" in 2002, and ending with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2" in 2011, nearly ten years after the first film's release. "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" (2016) is the first film in the spin-off prequel "Fantastic Beasts" series. A sequel, titled "", has been released in November 2018, while three additional instalments have been announced, including one scheduled for 2020.
Saul Zaentz
Zaentz was peripherally involved in the controversy about who would make a live-action film version of "The Hobbit", because of his ownership of the film rights to the novel. Peter Jackson, who directed the successful "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy, was the first person scheduled to direct "The Hobbit".
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
The film stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. It is the sequel to "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and is followed by "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince".
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is a 2004 fantasy film directed by Alfonso Cuarón and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on J. K. Rowling's 1999 novel of the same name. The film, which is the third instalment in the "Harry Potter" film series, was written by Steve Kloves and produced by Chris Columbus, David Heyman, and Mark Radcliffe. The story follows Harry Potter's third year at Hogwarts as he is informed that a prisoner named Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban intending to kill him.
Roger Pratt (cinematographer)
Roger Pratt BSC (born 27 February 1947) is a British cinematographer. Pratt has been the director of photography for more than 35 films. Among his body of films, he has worked on "Batman" (1989), "Frankenstein" (1994), "102 Dalmatians" (2000), "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (2002), "Troy" (2004), and more recently "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" (2005), "Inkheart" (2008) and "The Karate Kid" (2010).
Harry Potter (film series)
Although Steven Spielberg initially negotiated to direct the first film, he declined the offer. Spielberg wanted the adaptation to be an animated film, with American actor Haley Joel Osment providing Harry Potter's voice. Spielberg contended that, in his opinion, there was every expectation of profit in making the film. He claims that making money would have been like "shooting ducks in a barrel. It's just a slam dunk. It's just like withdrawing a billion dollars and putting it into your personal bank accounts. There's no challenge". In the "Rubbish Bin" section of her website, Rowling maintains that she had no role in choosing directors for the films, writing "Anyone who thinks I could (or would) have 'veto-ed' him [Spielberg] needs their Quick-Quotes Quill serviced."
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (soundtrack)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the soundtrack to the 2007 film of the same name, based on the book by J. K. Rowling. Nicholas Hooper composed the film's score, following John Williams, who scored the first three films, and Patrick Doyle, who did the fourth. Though new to the series, Hooper had worked with director David Yates before. The soundtrack was released 10 July 2007, the day before the film's release.
Lord Voldemort
Voldemort appears in seven "Harry Potter" films, namely "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2". Several actors have portrayed him in his varying incarnations and ages.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
Filming began in early 2004. The Hogwarts scenes were shot at the Leavesden Film Studios. Five days after its release, the film had grossed over US$102 million at the North American box office, which is the third-highest first-weekend tally for a "Harry Potter" film behind "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Part 2". "Goblet of Fire" enjoyed an immensely successful run at the box office, earning $896 million worldwide, which made it the highest-grossing film of 2005 and the eighth-highest-grossing film of all-time at that time and the sixth-highest-grossing film in the "Harry Potter" series.
Albus Dumbledore
Dumbledore was portrayed by Richard Harris in the film adaptations of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (known as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the USA) and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets". After Harris' death, Michael Gambon portrayed Dumbledore for all of the remaining "Harry Potter" films. Jude Law portrayed Dumbledore in the prequel film "".
Lego Harry Potter
The first film (titled "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States) saw the largest number of sets, with fourteen being made in total. Initially, only eleven were produced, however three more were released the next century .
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
A two-part film adaptation of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" is directed by David Yates, written by Steve Kloves and produced by David Heyman, David Barron and J. K. Rowling. Part 1 was released on 19 November 2010, and Part 2 on 15 July 2011. Filming began in February 2009, and ended on 12 June 2010. However, the cast confirmed they would reshoot the epilogue scene as they only had two days to shoot the original. Reshoots officially ended around December 2010. "Part 1" ended at Chapter 24 of the book, when Voldemort regained the Elder Wand. However, there were a few omissions, such as the appearances of Dean Thomas and Viktor Krum, and Peter Pettigrew's death. James Bernadelli of "Reelviews" said that the script stuck closest to the text since "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", yet this was met with negativity from some audiences as the film inherited "the book's own problems".
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
In January 2006, "The Goblet of Fire" surpassed the box office takings of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (2002) to become the eighth-highest-grossing film worldwide, and the second-highest-grossing film in the " Harry Potter" series, behind "The Philosopher's Stone". , it has been the sixth-highest-grossing "Harry Potter" film behind "The Philosopher's Stone", "The Order of the Phoenix" and "The Half-Blood Prince", "The Deathly Hallows – Part 1", and "The Deathly Hallows – Part 2".
Harry Potter (character)
In the eight "Harry Potter" films screened from 2001 to 2011, Harry Potter has been portrayed by British actor Daniel Radcliffe. Radcliffe was asked to audition for the role of Harry in 2000 by producer David Heyman, while in attendance at a play titled "Stones in His Pockets" in London. The role has been highly lucrative for Radcliffe; as of 2015, he had an estimated wealth of $110 million and was paid a collective $53 million for the last two films.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" was adapted into a film, released worldwide on 18 November 2005, which was directed by Mike Newell and written by Steve Kloves. The film grossed $102.7 million for the opening weekend, and eventually grossed $896 million worldwide. The film was also nominated for Best Art Direction at the 78th Academy Awards.
Harry Potter (film series)
Six directors of photography worked on the series: John Seale on the first film, Roger Pratt on the second and fourth, Michael Seresin on the third, Sławomir Idziak on the fifth, Bruno Delbonnel on the sixth, and Eduardo Serra on the seventh and eighth. Delbonnel was considered to return for both parts of "Deathly Hallows", but he declined, stating that he was "scared of repeating" himself. Delbonnel's cinematography in "Half-Blood Prince" gained the series its only Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography. As the series progressed, each cinematographer faced the challenge of shooting and lighting older sets (which had been around since the first few films) in unique and different ways. Chris Columbus said the series' vivid colouring decreased as each film was made.
Harry Potter
Rowling had creative control on the film series, observing the filmmaking process of "Philosopher's Stone" and serving as producer on the two-part "Deathly Hallows", alongside David Heyman and David Barron. The "Harry Potter" films have been top-rank box office hits, with all eight releases on the list of highest-grossing films worldwide. "Philosopher's Stone" was the highest-grossing "Harry Potter" film up until the release of the final instalment of the series, "Deathly Hallows", while "Prisoner of Azkaban" grossed the least. As well as being a financial success, the film series has also been a success among film critics.
Harry Potter (film series)
The rights for the first four novels in the series were sold to Warner Bros. for £1,000,000 by J.K. Rowling. After the release of the fourth book in July 2000, the first film, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", was released on 16 November 2001. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $90 million in the United States alone, which set a record opening worldwide. The succeeding three motion picture adaptations followed suit in financial success, while garnering positive reviews from fans and critics. The fifth film, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", was released by Warner Bros. on 11 July 2007 in English-speaking countries, except for the UK and Ireland, which released the movie on 12 July. The sixth, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", was released on 15 July 2009 to critical acclaim and finished its theatrical run ranked as the number two grossing film of 2009 on the worldwide charts.
A Very Potter Sequel
The musical was performed May 14-16, 2010, on the University of Michigan campus. It was produced by StarKid Productions and directed by Matt Lang. The musical starred Darren Criss as Harry Potter, Joey Richter as Ron Weasley, Bonnie Gruesen as Hermione Granger, Lauren Lopez as Draco Malfoy, and Joe Walker as Dolores Umbridge. The video version of the musical premiered in its entirety at Infinitus, a Harry Potter convention. The video premiered on YouTube July 22, 2010, and within two days had gotten over 160,000 views, making the StarKid Productions page the most viewed of the day.
Whorrey Potter and the Sorcerer's Balls
Whorrey Potter and the Sorcerer's Balls is a magic themed gay pornographic film produced by Dominic Ford. The film is a parody of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" and was released in 3D technology, being considered by some the most innovative product of the new technology since "Avatar." The film was nominated for twelve Grabby Awards, including "Best Videography", "Best Screenplay", "Best Director", "Best Solo" (Luke Marcum), and "Best Supporting Actor" (Matthew Rush).
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
Before David Yates was officially chosen to direct the film, many directors had expressed an interest in taking the helm. Alfonso Cuarón, the director of the third film, stated he "would love to have the opportunity" to return. "Goblet of Fire" director Mike Newell declined a spot to direct the fifth film, and was not approached for this one. Guillermo del Toro turned down the chance to direct the film in order to direct "". Terry Gilliam was Rowling's personal choice to direct "Philosopher's Stone". When asked whether he would consider directing a later film, Gilliam said, "Warner Bros. had their chance the first time around, and they blew it."
David Heyman
David Jonathan Heyman (born 26 July 1961) is an English film producer and the founder of Heyday Films. In 1999, he secured the film rights to the "Harry Potter" film series and went on to produce all eight instalments, becoming one of the most central crew members over the course of the eight films. In 2013, as the producer of "Gravity", he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture and won a BAFTA Award for Best British Film, his second collaboration with director Alfonso Cuarón after "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban".
Cinema of the United Kingdom
The new decade saw a major new film series in the Harry Potter films, beginning with "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in 2001. David Heyman's company Heyday Films has produced seven sequels, with the final title released in two parts – "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" in 2010 and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2" in 2011. All were filmed at Leavesden Studios in England.
Chris Rankin
Rankin is the co-founder of a theatre company, Painted Horse UK. He re-appeared in the final two films of the Harry Potter film franchise, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" and "Part 2", after his character's absence from "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", and only a brief non-speaking role in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix".
Wizarding World
In October 1998, Warner Bros. purchased the film rights to the first four novels of the "Harry Potter" fantasy series by J. K. Rowling for a seven-figure sum, after a pitch from producer David Heyman. Warner Bros. took particular notice of Rowling's wishes and thoughts about the films when drafting her contract. One of her principal stipulations was that they be shot in Britain with an all-British cast, which has been generally adhered to. On 8 August 2000, the virtually unknown Daniel Radcliffe and newcomers Rupert Grint and Emma Watson were selected to play Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Chris Columbus was hired to direct the film adaptation of "Philosopher's Stone," with Steve Kloves selected to write the screenplay. Filming began on 29 September 2000 at Leavesden Film Studios and concluded on 23 March 2001, with final work being done in July. Principal photography took place on 2 October 2000 at North Yorkshire's Goathland railway station. Warner Bros. had initially planned to release the film over 4 July 2001 weekend, making for such a short production window that several proposed directors removed themselves from consideration. Because of time constraints, the date was put back, and "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was released in the United Kingdom and the United States on 16 November 2001.
Harry Potter (film series)
David Heyman also said, "I suppose Chris Columbus was the most conservative choice from the studio's point of view. But he expressed real passion." Producer Tanya Seghatchian said they were "more adventurous" in choosing a director for the third film and went straight to Alfonso Cuarón. Mike Newell became the first British director of the series when he was chosen for the fourth film; Newell was considered to direct the first film before he dropped out. David Yates directed the final films after David Heyman thought him capable of handling the edgy, emotional, and political material of the later novels.
Production of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Before David Yates was officially chosen to direct, others had expressed an interest in the job. Alfonso Cuarón, director of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", had said that he would be tempted to return to direct. Guillermo del Toro, who passed on "Prisoner of Azkaban", had expressed interest in directing "Deathly Hallows", but an increased workload over the production of "The Hobbit" ruled him out of the project.
Michael Gambon
In 2004, he began playing Albus Dumbledore, Hogwarts's headmaster in the third installment of J. K. Rowling's franchise, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", taking over the role after the death of Richard Harris. (Harris had also played Maigret on television four years before Gambon took that role.) Gambon reprised the role of Dumbledore in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", which was released in November 2005 in the United Kingdom and the United States. He returned to the role again in the fifth film, 2007's "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", and the sixth film, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince". He appeared in the seventh film; "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts I and II", released in two parts in 2010 and 2011. Gambon told an interviewer that, when playing Dumbledore, he does not "have to play anyone really. I just stick on a beard and play me, so it's no great feat. I never ease into a role—every part I play is just a variant of my own personality. I'm not really a character actor at all...'"
Rupert Grint
Starting in 2000, casting began for the film adaptation of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", the best-selling novel written by author J. K. Rowling. Rowling personally insisted that the cast be British and assisted Susie Figgis and director Chris Columbus in casting the roles. Grint chose to audition for the role of protagonist Ron Weasley, one of Harry Potter's best friends at Hogwarts, and was a fan of the book series. Having seen a "Newsround" report about the open casting, he sent in a video of himself rapping about how he wished to receive the role. His attempt was successful as the casting team asked for a meeting with him. On 8 August 2000, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and an 11-year-old Grint were selected to play the roles of Harry, Hermione Granger, and Ron, respectively. Grint is the oldest member of the trio. The release of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in 2001 was Grint's debut screen performance. Breaking records for opening-day sales and opening-weekend takings, it was the highest-grossing film of that year. With a total of US$974 million in its theatrical run, "Philosopher's Stone" stands as the second most commercially successful entry in the series. It was also critically well-received, scoring mainly positive reviews from critics. However, a number of critics found the adaption staying faithful to the book to be both its best and worst quality. Grint won a Satellite Award in the category of "Outstanding New Talent", and a Young Artist Award for "Most Promising Young Newcomer".
Steve Kloves
Warner Bros. sent Kloves a list of novels that the company was considering to adapt as films. The listing included the first "Harry Potter" novel, which intrigued him despite his usual indifference to these catalogs. He went on to write the screenplays for the first four films in the series. However, he turned down writing the fifth film, stating that "The fourth film, "Goblet of Fire", was really hard to do. I wrote on it for two years. But it’s not that simple and I don't know that I'll ever fully understand why I didn't do it." After Michael Goldenberg wrote the screenplay for the fifth film, Kloves then returned to write the sixth, seventh and eighth installments.
David Heyman
In 1997 Heyman returned to London and founded his own production company, Heyday Films. He has since produced a number of films including the popular "Harry Potter" film adaptations, beginning with 2001's "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" and ending with 2011's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2". Other notable productions during this time include the 2007 blockbuster "I Am Legend" and the 2008 films "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas", "Is Anybody There?", and "Yes Man".
Lego Harry Potter
Lego "Harry Potter" is a Lego theme based on the films of the "Harry Potter" series. Lego models of important scenes, vehicles and characters were made for the first six films and all the books released. The first sets appeared in 2001, to coincide with the release of the first film, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" ("Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States). Subsequent sets were released alongside the new films, until "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". The line then went dormant for three years, with sets being released in 2010 and 2011. In 2018, it was announced that more sets based on the "Harry Potter" franchise would be released, including new sets based on "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" and its sequel, "".
Martins Heron
Martins Heron is well known locally as being the site of Harry Potter's uncle and aunt's house. The filmed version of the first of JK Rowling's famous stories, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was filmed partly on location. The external scenes with the actor Daniel Radcliffe playing Harry Potter at his house were shot on location at a house in Picket Post Close, Martins Heron. However, according to the documentary "Creating the World of Harry Potter", logistics made this location impractical as a long-term filming location, so a portion of the street was recreated on the backlot of Leavesden Film Studios.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
With "Prisoner of Azkaban", production of the "Harry Potter" films switched to an eighteen-month cycle, which producer David Heyman explained was "to give each [film] the time it required." Chris Columbus, the director of the previous two films, decided not to return to helm the third instalment as he "hadn't seen [his] own kids for supper in the week for about two and a half years." Even so, he remained on as a producer alongside Heyman. Guillermo del Toro was approached to direct but considered the film "so bright and happy and full of light, that [he] wasn't interested." Marc Forster turned down the film because he had made "Finding Neverland" and did not want to direct child actors again. M. Night Shyamalan was considered to direct but turned it down because he was working on his own film, "The Village". Warner Bros. then composed a three-name short list for Columbus's replacement, which comprised Callie Khouri, Kenneth Branagh (who played Gilderoy Lockhart in "Chamber of Secrets") and eventual selection Alfonso Cuarón. Cuarón was initially nervous about accepting, as he had not read any of the books or seen the films. After reading the series, he changed his mind and signed on to direct, as he had immediately connected to the story. Cuarón's appointment pleased J. K. Rowling who loved his film "Y Tu Mamá También" and was impressed with his adaptation of "A Little Princess". Heyman found that "tonally and stylistically, [Cuarón] was the perfect fit." As his first exercise with the actors who portray the central trio, Cuarón assigned Radcliffe, Grint and Watson to write an autobiographical essay about their character, written in the first person, spanning birth to the discovery of the magical world, and including the character's emotional experience. Of Rupert Grint's essay, Cuarón recalls, "Rupert didn't deliver the essay. When I questioned why he didn't do it, he said, 'I'm Ron; Ron wouldn't do it.' So I said, 'Okay, you do understand your character.' That was the most important piece of acting work that we did on "Prisoner of Azkaban", because it was very clear that everything they put in those essays was going to be the pillars they were going to hold on to for the rest of the process."
Harry Potter (film series)
The "Harry Potter" films and their success have been retrospectively considered to have had a significant impact on the film industry. They are cited as having helped redefine the Hollywood blockbuster in the 21st century by initiating a shift toward established media franchises forming the basis of successful films. In the wake of the final film's release, Claudia Puig of "USA Today" wrote that the films "inspired every major studio to try to capture [its] alchemic formula, spawning a range of copycats and wannabes" and "also have shown Hollywood how to make a glossy blockbuster with an eye toward keeping costs down." A 2009 article from "The Economist" argued that the films were "in the vanguard" of adaptations of established properties being the modern film franchise model, citing "The Lord of the Rings", "Spider-Man" and "The Dark Knight Trilogy" as examples of successful film series that followed "Harry Potter"s suit. YouTube hosts many fan films, ranging from amateur productions to full-length films.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
"Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" is directed by John Tiffany with choreography by Steven Hoggett, set design by Christine Jones, costume design by Katrina Lindsay, lighting design by Neil Austin, music by Imogen Heap, and sound design by Gareth Fry. In addition, special effects were created by Jeremy Chernick, with illusions by Jamie Harrison, and musical supervision by Martin Lowe.
Harry Potter (film series)
Six films in the "Harry Potter" franchise — "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", Parts 1 & 2 — have to date grossed around $216 million in IMAX theaters worldwide.