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9 movies and shows I’m most excited to see in the rest of 2026 — including the return of ‘Harry Potter’

alix.blackburn@futurenet.com (Alix Blackburn) — Sat, 25 Jul 2026 08:30:00 +0000

If you thought the first half of the year was busy, brace yourself, because the rest of 2026 is stacked. From massive theatrical blockbusters to late-night TV binges, the calendar between now and December is stacked with projects I’ve been counting down the days for.

In the coming months, we’re getting superhero epics, original sci-fi flicks, and some seriously exciting horror films. Whether it’s iconic comic book heroes clashing on the big screen, terrifying slasher prequels arriving on streaming, or long-awaited returns to dystopian worlds, there seems to be a major release landing almost every month.

To top it all off, the holiday season is set to close out the year with a bang, bringing one of the most anticipated TV reboots in recent memory with “Harry Potter,” alongside some truly beastly horror from genre mastermind Robert Eggers. If your watchlist is looking a little sparse right now, it’s time to clear your schedule and start adding these upcoming movies and shows.

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ (July 31)

Starting with a film we don’t have long to wait for: “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” Following Doctor Strange’s memory-wiping spell at the end of “No Way Home,” the world has completely forgotten Peter Parker exists, and that emotional setup alone has me incredibly intrigued. But what has me most excited is the mystery surrounding Sadie Sink’s character, who fans have theorized could be a young Jean Grey. If that turns out to be true, I might just freak out (in the best way).

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” follows Peter Parker (Tom Holland) several years after the events of “No Way Home,” as he continues protecting New York City as Spider-Man while living a life where no one remembers Peter Parker. After a strange series of crimes begins spreading across the city, Peter is pulled into a dangerous mystery involving a powerful new threat. With his responsibilities as Spider-Man increasing, he must confront a major change that could affect his abilities.

"Spider-Man: Brand New Day" hits theaters on July 31

‘The End of Oak Street’ (August 14)

I love it when movies take the leap to be original, and even more so when it’s sci-fi. “The End of Oak Street” is one of my most anticipated movies of the year, and I’m one of those people who still believe it’s connected to the “Cloverfield” franchise. J.J. Abrams is producing the movie through his company, Bad Robot. Abrams famously has a pattern of buying unique, standalone spec scripts and converting them into “Cloverfield” anthology films. Even if it’s not connected, I’m still super hyped.

The Platt family lives a quiet suburban life until a mysterious cosmic event tears their neighborhood from its original location, transporting Oak Street to an unknown world. Led by parents Denise (Anne Hathaway) and Greg (Ewan McGregor), the family must endure a strange new landscape filled with prehistoric dangers, including roaming dinosaurs, while searching for a way to survive and understand what happened to their home.

"The End of Oak Street" hits theaters on August 14

‘Resident Evil’ (September 18)

Another super exciting release is “Resident Evil,” which is based on one of my favorite video games ever. Directed by horror auteur Zach Cregger, the film abandons the previous movie continuities to tell a focused, real-time survival horror story set during the collapse of Raccoon City. Rather than adapting established video game protagonists like Leon Kennedy or Claire Redfield, the film takes place on the periphery of the iconic 1998 Raccoon City outbreak from an entirely new perspective, which I think is a smart move.

Set during a timeline parallel to the events of "Resident Evil 2," the film follows Bryan (Austin Abrams), a medical courier making a routine delivery in Raccoon City, but the delivery goes horribly wrong. When a sudden, catastrophic viral outbreak unleashes hordes of infected monsters, the city falls into chaotic collapse. Trapped inside the sprawling disaster zone, Bryan is forced onto a desperate, harrowing foot journey across a frozen, monster-filled landscape.

"Resident Evil" hits theaters on September 18

‘Crystal Lake’ (October 15)

“Crystal Lake” is A24 and Peacock’s long-awaited TV expansion of the “Friday the 13th” universe. Showrunner Brad Caleb Kane has described the 1970s-set project not as a straightforward slasher, but as a blend of a paranoid '70s psychological thriller and character drama. It seems to draw heavy inspiration from classic era-defining cinema (think “The Stepford Wives” meets “Carrie”), tracking how grief and community paranoia rot the town from the inside out.

Set in the 1950s, the story focuses on single mother Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini) struggling with overwhelming grief nearly a year after her young, sickly son, Jason (Callum Vinson), tragically drowns at a local summer camp. When two mysterious strangers arrive in town digging into her past, a dark sequence of events is triggered. Soon, violent incidents begin targeting residents and camp organizers around the lake, and the local community grows increasingly suspicious.

"Crystal Lake" drops on Peacock on October 15

‘Clayface’ (October 23)

“Clayface” brings one of Gotham City's most tragic villains into DC Studios’ main lineup with a visceral, Cronenberg-esque R-rated body horror origin story. Written by horror mastermind Mike Flanagan, this film stands out as one of the most unconventional moves DC Studios has made so far. The newest trailer shows some seriously grotesque physical side effects, like Matt Hagen’s eyelids melting together in a mid-flight airplane bathroom. Yes, it sounds gross, but it also looks like a solid horror flick.

Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries) is a rising Hollywood actor whose career and face are violently destroyed when a local mob boss leaves him disfigured. Desperate to restore his appearance, Matt agrees to an experimental medical procedure administered by fringe scientist Dr. Caitlin Corr (Naomi Ackie). The treatment successfully repairs his face, but causes unexpected biological side effects. His body mutates into malleable, shapeshifting clay, granting him the ability to manipulate his physical form at will.

"Clayface" hits theaters on October 23

‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping’ (November 20)

“The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping” brings audiences back to Panem for the fifth big-screen installment in the franchise. The scale and lore depth of this film make it one of the most ambitious entries in the franchise to date. Lionsgate backed it with a record budget exceeding $150 million, matching the massive world-building required for a 48-tribute Quarter Quell. This very much has the paranoia-fueled 1970s psychological thriller aesthetic, and I’m here for it.

Set 24 years before the original trilogy, the prequel centers on a 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy (Joseph Zada) during the 50th Hunger Games, known as the Second Quarter Quell. To mark the milestone, the Capitol alters the rules by demanding double the usual number of tributes, forcing 48 teenagers into the arena. Reaped alongside three fellow District 12 tributes — including Maysilee Donner (Mckenna Grace) — Haymitch is torn from his family and girlfriend.

"The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping" hits theaters on November 20

‘Avengers: Doomsday’ (December 18)

I had to include “Avengers: Doomsday” on this list considering it’s one of the biggest Marvel events in years. This marks Marvel Studios' return to massive, event-level crossovers. Directed by franchise veterans Anthony and Joe Russo and scripted by Stephen McFeely and Michael Waldron, the film serves as the penultimate chapter of the Multiverse Saga. The central existential threat facing all reality is Victor von Doom, with Robert Downey Jr. returning to the MCU in the heavily accented, ruthless, and complex villainous lead role.

“Avengers: Doomsday” follows major hero factions — including the Earth-616 Avengers, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men — across three distinct universes put on a catastrophic collision course. As dangerous multiverse-shattering “incursions” threaten to annihilate their respective worlds, these disparate hero teams must join forces. Together, they converge to stand against Victor von Doom (Robert Downey Jr.), a brilliant, magically-armored mastermind wielding immense cosmic and mystic power who seeks to subjugate reality itself.

"Avengers: Doomsday" hits theaters on December 18

‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ (December 25)

Season 1 of HBO’s massive decade-long Harry Potter TV series adapts “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.” The ambition behind this new adaptation goes far beyond simply re-filming the 2001 movie. With an eight-episode order for season 1, the creative team has the breathing room to deliver the most comprehensive on-screen version of J.K. Rowling’s debut novel to date. The direction leans into the subtle horror and isolation of an 11-year-old boy entering a world that is just as dangerous as it is magical.

On his 11th birthday, mistreated orphan Harry Potter (Dominic McLaughlin) discovers he possesses magical powers and receives an invitation to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Leaving his non-magical life behind, Harry enters a hidden, extraordinary realm alongside new friends Ron Weasley (Alastair Stout) and Hermione Granger (Arabella Stanton). As he adapts to his studies and investigates mysterious occurrences within the castle, Harry uncovers a secret subterranean vault guarding an ancient, power-granting artifact.

"Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" drops on HBO Max on December 18

‘Werwulf’ (December 25)

Can you tell I love horror now that we’ve reached the end of the list? The final pick, “Werwulf,” sees director Robert Eggers turn his maniacal focus to wolf lore. This time, the story is set in 13th-century England around the year 1300, during the absolute tail end of the country’s wild wolf population, and centers on an unnamed, deeply tormented farmer. It seems like the narrative digs deep into medieval superstition, panic surrounding Satanic shape-shifting, and the primal horror of human-to-animal metamorphosis. It’s going to be wild.

A farmer (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) suffers under a curse that violently contorts his body into a monstrous wolf. As brutal nighttime attacks terrorize a remote medieval village, suspicion spreads rapidly throughout the isolated community. The farmer desperately tries to hide his affliction to protect his wife (Lily-Rose Depp) and children from his own savage transformations. Meanwhile, a relentless hunter (Willem Dafoe) arrives in the village determined to track down and slaughter the beast.

"Werwulf" hits theaters on December 25

It’s International Harry Potter Day! Test your charms, broomsticks and magical knowledge with this spellbinding quiz

ella.taylor@futurenet.com (Ella Taylor) — Sat, 02 May 2026 11:30:00 +0000

Did you know that today is International Harry Potter Day? If the sight of a broomstick is enough to make you yearn for Cedric Diggory-level quidditch prowess, you eye grand staircases for signs of movement, and attempt to run at train station walls, then today's your lucky day.

Whether the sorting hat placed you in Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or even Slytherin, we're all friends here at Tom's Guide, so I want you to enjoy reminiscing on the adventures of everyone's favorite wizard in the fun multiple choice quiz below. Hit 'Play' and see if you can score 10/10 — or if you're more muggle than magic.

Mischief managed!

Don't forget to register on our quizzes, games and polls platform, Kwizly, to save your score, reveal hints, and secure your spot on the competitive Tom's Guide leaderboard, and see the results of all our polls in real-time.

How did you do this time? We hope you've earned your place in the Hogwarts hall of fame, rather than a trip to Azkaban.

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Play multiple choice, lystery, word searches, crosswords and guess the number – can you reach the top of the leaderboard?

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Join Tom’s Guide Club for free, to earn badges, talk to other members and Tom’s writers, get exclusive deals and more.

If you enjoyed this quiz, then please bookmark our Quiz section and visit our Polls page to have your say on all manner of topics, from garden pests to the latest Apple releases (don't worry, if you hold no strong opinions about slugs then you can filter by the topics that interest you).

'Harry Potter' HBO TV series finds its Harry, Ron and Hermione — meet the new golden trio

Alyse Stanley — Tue, 27 May 2025 16:46:43 +0000

Roll out those red and gold banners for three new Gryffindors. HBO has finally revealed who will play the lead roles of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley in its upcoming Harry Potter TV series reboot.

Newcomer Dominic McLaughlin will star as Harry Potter alongside Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley and Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger. The three young actors will respectively inherit their roles from Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, the original golden trio in all eight Harry Potter movies.

The series is set to be a "faithful adaptation" of J.K. Rowling's hugely popular fantasy series that will “dive deep into each of the iconic books.” Production is set to kick off this summer, and the show will release on HBO Max, though the number of seasons we can expect remains a mystery.

“After an extraordinary search led by casting directors Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, we are delighted to announce we have found our Harry, Hermione, and Ron,” showrunner Francesca Gardiner and executive producer Mark Mylod said in a Tuesday press release.

“The talent of these three unique actors is wonderful to behold, and we cannot wait for the world to witness their magic together onscreen. We would like to thank all the tens of thousands of children who auditioned. It’s been a real pleasure to discover the plethora of young talent out there.”

HBO's Harry Potter series cast: Who's confirmed for the reboot?

The trio joins an already stacked cast for HBO's Harry Potter reboot. In April, HBO announced which actors would be taking on some of the magical school's beloved faculty members.

The Emmy- and Tony-winning "Conclave" star John Lithgow will be giving the first years a few memorable words (nitwit! blubber! oddment! tweak!) as Hogwarts' headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

Two-time Oscar nominee Janet McTeer ("Tumbleweeds', "Albert Nobbs") will play the no-nonsense Transfiguration Professor Minerva McGonagall, made famous on the big screen by the late, great Maggie Smith.

Everyone's favorite moody Potions Professor Severus Snape will be played by "I May Destroy You" and "Black Mirror" actor Paapa Essiedu, who inherits the iconic role from the late Alan Rickman.

Meanwhile, actor-comedian Nick Frost ("Shaun of the Dead," "Hot Fuzz") is set to bring his signature humor and charm to the role of Hogwarts’ kind-hearted groundskeeper, Rubeus Hagrid. He'll be joined by acclaimed stage actor Luke Thallon as Professor Quirinus Quirrell, the nervous Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who plays a pivotal role in the first book, and Welsh actor Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch, the grumpy squib school caretaker.

Gardiner, best known for her work as a writer on "His Dark Materials," also serves as a writer and executive producer, while "Succession" director Mylod will helm multiple episodes. Rowling is also listed as an executive producer on the show.

Here at Tom's Guide, we'll keep you up to date on all the latest news about HBO's upcoming Harry Potter TV series.

HBO announces cast for ‘Harry Potter’ TV reboot —here’s who will play Dumbledore, Snape and more

Christina Izzo — Mon, 14 Apr 2025 14:53:08 +0000

All aboard! The Hogwarts Express will be chugging along yet again and bringing viewers to the Wizarding World via HBO's upcoming "Harry Potter" TV reboot. And now, we officially know which actors will be taking on some of the magical school's most-loved faculty members.

Earlier today, April 14, HBO announced the cast members who will play the iconic roles of Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Rubeus Hagrid and the like.

After many months of media rumors, the network has finally officially confirmed that "Conclave" star John Lithgow will don the dramatic cloaks of Hogwarts' headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

The Emmy and Tony winner previously talked to ScreenRant about the pressure involved with playing the beloved wizard: “It was not an easy decision because it’s going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I’m afraid. But I’m very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to 'Harry Potter.' That’s why it’s been such a hard decision. I’ll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I’ve said yes.”

Elsewhere in the series cast, you'll find two-time Oscar nominee Janet McTeer ("Tumbleweeds', "Albert Nobbs") in the role of stern Transfiguration Professor Minerva McGonagall, made famous on the big screen by the late, great Maggie Smith.

"I May Destroy You" and "Black Mirror" actor Paapa Essiedu will play the vital role of Potions Professor Severus Snape in the reboot, a bit of casting that has caused a stir among Potterheads since Essiedu is Black British and Snape was previously famously portrayed by white Englishman Alan Rickman.

As for filling the role, Mark Mylod — who is a director and executive producer on the HBO show — previously told The Hollywood Reporter, "Nobody can replace Alan Rickman, but we can find the next Alan Rickman.”

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Actor-comedian Nick Frost ("Shaun of the Dead," "Hot Fuzz") will bring his humor and warmth to playing Hogwarts' giant-hearted gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid. Frost will be joined by stage star Luke Thallon as Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Quirinus Quirrel, and Welch actor Paul Whitehouse as squib caretaker Argus Filch.

“We’re delighted to have such extraordinary talent onboard, and we can’t wait to see them bring these beloved characters to new life,” Francesca Gardiner, showrunner and executive producer, and Mark Mylod, director of multiple episodes and executive producer, said in a statement.

As for who will play our leading trio of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, as well as resident bully Draco Malfoy, no official casting announcements have been made just yet for those child roles. Though it's clear that HBO certainly wants to hire the right kiddos for those parts — according to HBO, the production team was auditioning between 500 and 1,000 young performers per day.

Tom's Guide will keep you posted on all intel regarding the upcoming "Harry Potter" TV series, which HBO assures "will be a faithful adaptation of the beloved 'Harry Potter' book series by author and executive producer J.K. Rowling and will feature an exciting and talented cast to lead a new generation of fandom, full of the fantastic detail and much-loved characters 'Harry Potter' fans have adored for over 25 years." Stay tuned!

'Harry Potter' TV show has been delayed until 2027 — but there's a positive production update

Martin Shore — Fri, 06 Dec 2024 11:16:03 +0000

Bad news, fantasy fans: the "Harry Potter" TV show recently got delayed by Max.

Earlier this week, we learned that this latest take on the Wizarding World had been pushed back from its originally scheduled 2026 release.

At a recent conference held on December 3, Warner Bros. Discovery's global streaming chief, JB Perrette, provided a number of updates about several of Max's upcoming shows.

In addition to confirming release windows for "The White Lotus" season 3, "The Last Of Us" season 2, "Euphoria" season 3 and "Game of Thrones" spinoff "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms", Perrette revealed that the new "Harry Potter" show would now be released in 2027.

"As you look at '26 and into '27, you begin a 10-year journey on the "Harry Potter" series, which we're super excited about", Perrette said. "And, I'd argue, may be the biggest event by the time we get to that series."

Okay, what's the good news about the 'Harry Potter' TV show?

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

While the "Harry Potter" TV show might not be hitting our screens anytime soon, we at the very least know that the wheels are starting to spin up on production.

Thanks to a report from Variety, we've learned that the new "Harry Potter" adaptation will start shooting next summer at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, where the original movies were also filmed.

The news was first shared at a presentation at Warner Bros. Discovery's London headquarters, where showrunner Francesca Gardiner and director Mark Mylod revealed they'd auditioned 32,000 children for the main roles of Harry, Ron, and Hermione. A production update was also shared on Max's social feeds.

Wands at the ready. The upcoming HBO Original Series, #HarryPotter, will be filming at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden with production beginning in Summer 2025 and coming to Max. pic.twitter.com/6JSOA20w52December 5, 2024

The casting team is apparently reviewing between 500 and 1,000 audition tapes every single day. Mylod also shared that, while they've not made any final decisions yet, the plan is to "workshop with some of our shortlisted candidates" in January.

What about Hogwarts staff? Well, rumors have already started to circulate. Just this week, it was widely reported that the "Harry Poter" team is eyeing Paapa Essiedu for the role of Severus Snape, and Mark Rylance was recently tipped to play Hogwarts' headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. Former Voldermort actor Ralph Fiennes has also recently let slip that he'd be "all in favour" of "Peaky Blinders" star Cillian Murphy taking on the role.

The series will be bringing the complete "Harry Potter" story to life in a planned TV reboot, with each season adapting one of the books in J. K. Rowling's seven-book saga.

We'll be keeping a close eye on any further "Harry Potter" news as it comes. And while you wait, why not cast a glance over our guide to the best Max shows to find plenty more shows to entertain you in the meantime?

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions delivers the magic — there's just one problem

alix.blackburn@futurenet.com (Alix Blackburn) — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 13:03:56 +0000

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions review: Specs

Platforms: PC (reviewed), Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Price: $29
Release Date: September 3, 2024
Genre: Sports

When Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions was first announced, I was incredibly excited because as much as I loved Hogwarts Legacy, it was missing one key element: Quidditch. For me, it’s the most iconic part of the Wizarding World, and I couldn’t wait to dive into the fast-paced, broomstick action that Quidditch Champions promised.

Developed by Unbroken Studios, Quidditch Champions is the latest multiplayer game that brings the thrill of broomstick action to life. It’s a high-speed, team-based take on Quidditch that adds a whole new layer to the Harry Potter universe.

But as magical as it sounds, there are some bumps. The player-switching mechanic, while ambitious, gets confusing when you’re in the middle of chaotic gameplay. Despite its magical appeal, this confusing control issue might be a dealbreaker for some players looking for a smoother Quidditch simulation.

Regardless, Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions remains an engaging game for fans of the Wizarding World. If you're a Harry Potter enthusiast or simply looking for a fresh and fun sports game, read my full Quidditch Champions review to find out why it’s a magical ride worth experiencing…

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions: The Basics

What is it? Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is a multiplayer game focused on the magical sport of Quidditch. Unlike past Harry Potter titles, this one focuses solely on broomstick-based action. Players can join in competitive Quidditch matches, either against bots or as part of an online team.
Who is it for? As you've probably guessed, Quidditch Champions is designed for fans of the Harry Potter universe, especially those who have always wanted to dive deeper into the world of Quidditch. Even if you aren’t a fan, it’s still perfect for players who enjoy competitive multiplayer games and fast-paced action.
What's the price? The standard edition of Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions costs $29, with the Deluxe Edition available for $39. This includes the Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor House Packs and 2,000 gold to spend in-game.
What games is this similar to? Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is similar to other fantasy sports games like Mario Strikers: Battle League and Knockout City.

Quidditch Champions is high-flying fun

(Image credit: Unbroken Studios, Warner Bros.)

Before delving straight into your first proper match, you’re tasked with completing several tutorials for each positional role in the game. Harry Potter fans will already know about the four positions: chasers, beaters, keepers and seekers.

Chasers are the key offensive players in Quidditch, responsible for scoring goals. The most aggressive player is the beater, who plays a crucial defensive role, using a bat to hit bludgers that can knock opposing players off their brooms. The keeper (who feels a bit pointless in this game) is the guardian of the goal hoops, tasked with preventing the opposing team’s chasers from scoring. Now finally we have the seeker, who is responsible for capturing the golden snitch and winning the team a whole bunch of points.

I spent most time with Qudditich Champions playing as a chaser because it felt the most intuitive. This position has a lot of control over the game since chasers can dash across the field and score. I did find passing to computer-controlled players challenging though, as they don’t always position themselves well, but when you’re in real online matches, everyone knows to spread out and play strategically. The satisfaction of snatching the ball from an opponent is also unmatched, and this single action can turn the game in your favor.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Games)

But despite the chaser being the best position, I still had fun smacking people off their brooms as a beater and, occasionally, preventing the other team from scoring as the keeper. However, being the keeper means you have to sit on your broom and wait for the action to come to you, which can lead to long stretches of merely observing the game.

The real thrill comes when you catch the golden snitch. Quidditch Champions tweaks the traditional rules a bit — catching the snitch won’t automatically win the game for your team. Instead, it earns you 30 points, which can give your team a big advantage without instantly ending the match. To catch the snitch, you fly through golden rings the winged golden ball leaves in its wake, these increase your speed and get you within catching distance.

Get a magical makeover

One of the standout features of Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is the extensive character customization suite that allows you to make your Quidditch player truly your own. I always appreciate a strong set of customization options as it deeply enhances the immersion by allowing me to make my main character look just like me. And in Quidditch Champions, you don’t just create a single avatar, instead, you create the look of your whole team.

(Image credit: Future, Unbroken Studios, Warner Bros.)

There’s also the option to play iconic characters like Sebastian Sallow from Hogwarts Legacy or Ginny Weasley. For other characters, you can buy them on the market page using in-game gold that you earn from progressing through the campaign and winning matches (I just had to buy Hermione Granger, of course).

Customization extends beyond appearance; you can also choose from a variety of emotes and broom trails to express yourself in the heat of the game. Your wand is another personal touch, and selecting one that complements your style only adds to the immersion. Little things like this make Quidditch Champions feel like part of the Harry Potter canon.

As you advance through your Quidditch career, you’ll earn skill points that can be used to refine and enhance your character. Mixing and matching these points will improve stats and unlock special moves, allowing you to develop a playstyle that fits each position. For example, you can boost your tackling skills as a chaser to make it easier to grab the quaffle from the opposing team. This skill tree gives you plenty of room to improve, and performing well in matches comes with the significant upside of further boosting your overall stats.

Build your dream team

(Image credit: Future, Unbroken Studios, Warner Bros.)

A key aspect of the game is building and improving your team over time. As you progress and improve your players you’ll learn which positions suit you best. For me, I naturally sought to improve the seeker first considering they can win your team 30 points if they catch the snitch, and so I put skill points into the "seeking" skill tree as much as possible.

However, one downside is that certain positions, like the keeper, can sometimes feel neglected because they’re less involved in the game’s action compared to roles like chasers and seekers. I personally found myself focusing more on upgrading the latter two positions, as their roles were more directly impactful in matches. As a consequence, my keeper remained relatively feeble making me even less motivated to select this position.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Games)

So, despite the ability to customize and upgrade each position, Quidditch Champions doesn’t always encourage building a balanced team. While experimenting with different strategies is part of the fun, the game doesn't push you toward creating a well-rounded lineup, which could limit your overall experience.

Now let’s talk about the big problem

While Quidditch Champions offers a very fun experience, it does have one significant flaw — the confusing player-switching mechanic.

During matches, I often found myself accidentally pressing emotes and saying "well done!" instead of switching players, which disrupted the flow of a match. The chaotic nature of Quidditch only compounds the issue, as it makes it really difficult to switch players smoothly when you’re in the heat of the action (and don't want to be knocked off your broom).

(Image credit: Future, Unbroken Studios, Warner Bros.)

I played on the controller because the game recommends it, but the game actually feels more suited to a keyboard. There were times when I was so focused on winning and making plays that switching players became an afterthought. When I did manage to switch, it often took me out of the game as I struggled to reorient myself and figure out where I was on the pitch.

This disruption is often frustrating and detracts from the otherwise exciting experience, making it challenging to stay engaged during critical moments like scoring a goal or catching the snitch.

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions: Verdict

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is a must-play for fans of the Wizarding World franchise or anyone in search of a good fantasy sports game. The immersive Quidditch matches, extensive customization options and the thrill of scoring goals or catching the snitch lead to truly magical moments.

Unfortunately, you might spend more time grappling with the confusing player-switching system than catching the golden snitch. It could take you several sessions to become fully accustomed to this poorly implemented aspect. Though, once you’ve been able to adjust, the game delivers plenty of fun and excitement.

Plus, I have to give credit to the team at Unbroken Studios for making the matches feel authentic. The moment you spawn onto the pitch, the atmosphere is electric. You can hear the crowd cheer, reacting to your every move, while the commentator’s funny, well-timed remarks keep the energy up, even when things aren’t going your way.

These small details show just how much care the developers put into recreating the magic of Quidditch, and it’s why Harry Potter Quidditch Champions is a must-play for wannabe witches and wizards.

New Harry Potter Quidditch game is free on PlayStation Plus — here's how PS5 and PS4 players can claim it right now

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 12:17:05 +0000

There was more than a decade between the release of Lego Harry Potter Years 5-7 and last year's Hogwarts Legacy, but Wizarding World fans won’t have to wait as long for their next gaming fix set in the magical universe. Raise your wands in celebration because Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions launches today (Tuesday, September 3), and PlayStation Plus subscribers can enjoy this fantasy sports game for free.

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is launching as part of the PlayStation Plus Monthly Games (confirmed via the PlayStation Blog) lineup, so subscribers at any tier level (even the lowest Essential level) can download this new Harry Potter game on PS5 or PS4 right now.

This freebie will be available until September 30, and once claimed it’s yours to keep for as long as your PlayStation Plus account remains active. To grab your free copy of Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions just head to the PlayStation Store and click the "Add to Library" button. That's literally all you need to do to claim this freebie.

Harry Potter Quidditch Champions: FREE (w/ PlayStation Plus) @ PlayStation Store
Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions lets you take to the skies to compete in the iconic fantasy sport. Play in any position (including Harry's own role as a seeker) and play in single-player career mode, or prove your Quidditch skills to the world in online multiplayer. There's also plenty to unlock, such as fan-favorite characters and loads of cosmetic gear. View Deal

If taking flight in a brand new Harry Potter gaming experience wasn’t enough excitement for the month, PlayStation Plus subscribers also get access to authentic baseball simulator MLB The Show 24 and spooky indie platformer Little Nightmares 2. The latter is especially worthwhile, as it’s a very overlooked horror game that combines enjoyable scares with a foreboding atmosphere and solid gameplay.

However, while baseball and horror fans will be pleased with these additional free games, there’s no denying that Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is the headline new edition, and here’s why this new game set in the Wizarding World could be something very special…

This is the Quidditch game we’ve been waiting for

When Hogwarts Legacy launched last spring, Harry Potter fans were delighted with its digital recreation of the iconic school of witchcraft and wizardry, and the fact it allowed players to create their own character in the beloved fictional universe. However, there was one common, criticism: The lack of Quidditch.

Fortunately, Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions is looking to right that wrong by dedicating an entire game to the high-flying sport. Hoping to become the next world-conquering online experience, Quidditch Champions lets you play the fantasy sport either solo or online.

As you would expect, you can play as any of the sport’s four unique positions —Chaser, Keeper, Beater or Seeker — and compete across iconic Quidditch arenas including the Hogwarts grounds and the Burrow, home of the Weasley family. There’s a full career mode, where you aim to achieve sporting immortality by winning the Quidditch World Cup. But if you really want to test your flying skills, you’ll need to head online to compete with the world.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Games)

Plus, much like the majority of modern-day multiplayer experiences, Quidditch Champions lets you fully customize your own character, tweaking everything from your appearance to your celebration emote after chucking the quaffle through one of the goal hoops (that probably reads of waffle to non-Potter fans). But, fear not, publisher Warner Bros. Games has confirmed there are no microtransactions here.

However, if you want to give yourself a boost before lift-off, Hogwarts Legacy owners can link their WB account in Quidditch Champions and get access to an exclusive “Legacy Pack”. This includes Slytherin student Sebastian Sallow as a playable character alongside a set of Hogwarts Legacy-themed gear.

Only time will tell if Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions will become the next Rocket League or Fall Guys and take the gaming world by storm, or whether it’ll fail to find an audience like so many online-focused games before it (looking at you Foamstars), but at least PS5 and PS4 owners with a PlayStation Plus subscription can hop on a magical broomstick without having to pay a single silver sickle.

Harry Potter TV show — everything we know about HBO television reboot

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 17:43:00 +0000

The doors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry are set to reopen in a new Harry Potter TV show that will bring the magical adventures of the Boy Who Lived to the small screen. HBO’s television reboot of the beloved children’s series is officially in the works.

After much speculation, a Harry Potter TV show was confirmed by Warner Bros. Discovery in spring 2023. Initially set to be a Max Original, it’s now moved over to HBO proper. The initial announcement noted that it would be a “faithful adaptation” of the original novels by British author J.K. Rowling and that the controversial writer was on board as a producer.

Otherwise, details were thin on the ground, aside from a brief teaser trailer that featured zero seconds of footage and did little beyond confirming the project was in development. Fortunately, in recent months a few details have now trickled out including some casting news.

Nevertheless, if you can't wait to revisit Hogwarts and once again experience Harry’s journey from an orphan living in a cupboard under the stairs to a fully grown wizard on a mission to defeat the Dark Lord Voldemort, here’s everything we know about the Harry Potter TV show.

Harry Potter TV show potential release date

Devoted Harry Potter fans will no doubt want this small-screen version of the beloved books to arrive at a speed that would make a Firebolt broomstick blush, but unfortunately, making a TV show of this scale is a slow-moving process, and Harry Potter won’t make his HBO debut in 2025. Don’t even expect to meet the new Potter and pals next year either.

During an earnings call in February last year, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav indicated that the Harry Potter TV show isn’t expected to premiere until 2026. Unfortunately that date has since changed. In December 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery's global streaming chief, JB Perrette, said that the new "Harry Potter" show would now be released in 2027.

He stated during the conference: "As you look at '26 and into '27, you begin a 10-year journey on the "Harry Potter" series, which we're super excited about. And, I'd argue, may be the biggest event by the time we get to that series."

Although the "Harry Potter" TV series won’t be gracing our screens in the near future, production is finally gaining momentum. According to a report from Variety, filming for the new adaptation is set to begin this summer at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden — the same location where the original films were brought to life.

Exactly when in 2027 viewers can expect to be dining in the Great Hall and sleeping in the Gryffindor common room is a mystery. The wait is already more torturous than listening to the Fat Lady sing so let’s hope for an early 2027 date.

Harry Potter TV show cast

(Image credit: EA/Warner Bros.)

For a while there were no confirmed cast members for the Harry Potter TV show. However, that changed on February 25 when it was announced that John Lithgow is set to play Dumbledore. The actor remains tight-lipped about the series but acknowledges that taking on the role was a tough choice due to the significant time commitment at this point in his career.

In an interview with Screen Rant, Lithgow said: "Well, it came as a total surprise to me. I just got the phone call up at the Sundance Film Festival for yet another film, and it was not an easy decision because it's going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I'm afraid. But I'm very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to Harry Potter. That's why it's been such a hard decision. I'll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I've said yes."

(Image credit: Alamy / Entertainment Pictures / Warner Bros)

As of April 14, HBO officially announced some new cast members. We already know John Lithgow is playing Dumbledore, but we now have confirmation that Janet McTeer is Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu is Severus Snape, and Nick Frost is Rubeus Hagrid.

Newly announced guests and recurring cast include Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell and Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch.

Francesca Gardiner, showrunner and executive producer and Mark Mylod, director of multiple episodes and executive producer, said in the press release: "We’re delighted to have such extraordinary talent onboard, and we can’t wait to see them bring these beloved characters to new life."

So it seems like casting is well underway and we may hear some more news about who will play the students soon.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Discovery)

As for the so-called Golden Trio, Harry, Ron and Hermine, we finally know who will be taking on these big roles. Newcomer Dominic McLaughlin will star as Harry Potter alongside Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley and Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger.

Showrunner Francesca Gardiner and executive producer Mark Mylod said in a press release: “After an extraordinary search led by casting directors Lucy Bevan and Emily Brockmann, we are delighted to announce we have found our Harry, Hermione, and Ron.”

Not only that, but HBO Max also announced more cast members. This includes Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley, Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy, Johnny Flynn as Lucius Malfoy, Bertie Carvel as Cornelius Fudge, Bel Powley as Petunia, and Daniel Rigby as Vernon.

In addition, several key Hogwarts staff have been confirmed: John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, Luke Thallon as Professor Quirrell, Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch, and Louise Brealey as Madam Hooch.

The Weasley family includes Katherine Parkinson as Molly, Tristan Harland as Fred, Gabriel Harland as George, Ruari Spooner as Percy, and Gracie Cochrane as Ginny.

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Of course, there’s been much speculation about whether the cast of the ever-popular Harry Potter movies will return (potentially in new roles or just in a cameo appearance), but don’t bet on it. For starters, the show’s creative team almost certainly wants to create a new spin on the franchise that can exist separately from the movies, and the original actors have long since aged out of their roles.

When asked by E! News if he’d want to return to the Potterverse, Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry in all eight movies released between 2001 and 2011, the British actor said, “I don't think so. I think they very wisely want to [have] a clean break. And I don't know if it would work to have us do anything in it." Though he noted he would be watching the TV show.

Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom, offered a similar response telling People, “It’s not something I’m looking at or want to do” but he diplomatically left the door just a little bit ajar also stating that he “would not turn [his] nose up at.”

Here's a full confirmed list:

Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter
Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley
Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger
Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley
Tristan Harland as Fred Weasley
Gabriel Harland as George Weasley
Ruari Spooner as Percy Weasley
Gracie Cochrane as Ginny Weasley
Johnny Flynn as Lucius Malfoy
Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy
Bel Powley as Petunia Dursley
Daniel Rigby as Vernon Dursley
Bertie Carvel as Cornelius Fudge
John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore
Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall
Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape
Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid
Luke Thallon as Professor Quirrell
Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch
Louise Brealey as Madam Hooch

Harry Potter TV show creators and crew

While we’re without any details on the cast, we’ve got some information on who’s working on the Harry Potter TV show behind the scenes. It’s been confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter that Francesca Gardiner will serve as showrunner and writer.

Meanwhile, Mark Mylod will direct multiple episodes and is on board as a producer. Mylod and Gardiner have previously worked together on HBO’s “Succession” and both won Emmy awards for their contributions to the critically acclaimed drama Gardiner’s other credits include “His Dark Materials” and “Killing Eve”, while Mylod has directed episodes of “Games of Thrones”, “The Last of Us" season 2 and helmed the well-received thriller movie “The Menu."

The news that the show will be led by Gardiner, and at least partially shepherded from the director's chair by Mylod, seemingly puts to bed the idea that longtime Potter director David Yates will return. Yates directed the final four Potter movies and all three installments in the largely lackluster “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” movie franchise.

Harry Potter TV show plot

(Image credit: Alamy / Entertainment Pictures / Warner Bros)

There are no prizes for guessing the plot of the Harry Potter TV show; it’ll adapt the best-selling novels. This means starting with 1997’s "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" (released as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone" in the U.S.) and presumably culminating in a final season that covers "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

David Zaslav has confirmed that the plan is to adapt a book per season for a total of seven seasons. This is particularly exciting for Potter fans who felt the movie version had to cut too much stuff to shrink some of the larger books ("Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" is almost 900 pages) into two-hour movies. The movies are notorious for cutting plot points, and the lack of Quidditch coverage was an outrage.

The Harry Potter TV show will presumably have the extra time needed to cover fan-fan-favorite events omitted from the films like Nearly Headless Nick’s Deathday Party in "Philosopher’s Stone" and Hermione creating S.P.E.W. (Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare) in "Goblet of Fire."

It's also likely that we could get one season every year to ensure the kids actually look their age when attending Hogwarts (and it seems like season 2 could be in the works soon). On the Oct. 2, 2025 episode of The Ringer podcast "The Watch," co-host and "Harry Potter" series writer Andy Greenwald cheekily commented that he was heading back to London, seemingly to write season 2 of the HBO show. "I'm going back to London, for reasons that are secret," he told "The Watch" co-host Chris Ryan. "Perhaps, 'Chamber of Secrets.' Who can say?"

Harry Potter TV show outlook

There’s a degree of reasonable skepticism about the Harry Potter TV show. In fact, one TG staffer labeled it “the worst idea ever” when it was announced. The enduring popularity of the movies makes another adaptation feel somewhat redundant, and the Harry Potter IP has been tainted by Rowling’s transphobic comments.

However, as enjoyable as the movies remain to this day, there’s no denying that an awful lot of the source material was cut to squeeze each novel into a two-hour movie. A long-form TV show could be the perfect medium to tell these beloved fantasy stories in more detail and include all the plots and character arcs that never made the final theatrical cut.

It does feel like a missed opportunity to not explore the expanded Wizarding World beyond the adventures of Harry Potter. But considering the declining quality of the spin-off Fantastic Beasts series, perhaps HBO should stick with the familiar rather than step into the unknown.

9 best movies like Harry Potter on Disney Plus, Max and more

Audrey Fox — Mon, 20 Nov 2023 21:23:46 +0000

By this point, pretty much everyone and their pet rock has heard of Harry Potter. The bestselling book series spawned not just a popular stage musical and several spin-off books, but eight massively successful films that saw its young stars grow up before our very eyes.

With Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint in the three lead roles, the movies follow the adventures of one Harry Potter, a seemingly ordinary boy who learns that he actually has magical powers, and must fight against an evil fascist would-be dictator in order to save the wizarding community.

But what to do if you’ve seen all the movies and still have a hankering for some cinematic magic? We’ve assembled a list of movies like Harry Potter that’ll scratch that itch — all of which are currently available to stream.

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events

(Image credit: Alamy)

Back in the early 2000s, A Series of Unfortunate Events was one of Harry Potter’s main competitors when it came to kids’ fantasy books about ill-fated orphans. It revolves around the three Baudelaire children (Violet, Klaus, and baby Sunny), who lose their parents in a mysterious fire. They’re taken in by Count Olaf (Jim Carrey, who must have gotten a stomachache from chewing on all the scenery), a distant relation who has nefarious intentions for his new wards. What sets A Series of Unfortunate Events apart from other films in the same genre is that it has a pitch black sense of humor, putting its young heroes in endlessly bleak circumstances while still giving a wink to the audience.

Watch on Prime Video or Paramount Plus

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

(Image credit: Maximum Film | Alamy)

Before Harry Potter was even a twinkle in the eye of JK Rowling, The Chronicles of Narnia was enchanting children for generations (and continues to do so). But when the film version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe came out in 2005, it was greenlit at least partially in an attempt to capitalize on the success of the popular wizarding franchise, which made it clear that young audiences responded well to the fantasy genre.

The Pevensee children, a group of four siblings from WWII-era England, end up being magically transported to the land of Narnia by way of an ordinary wardrobe. There, they are drawn into geopolitical conflicts, battle an evil witch, meet Santa, and eventually become kings and queens. Not bad for a quartet of preteens.

Watch it on Disney Plus

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

(Image credit: Alamy)

Another day, another quasi-Harry Potter film with Christopher Columbus in the director’s chair. Like Harry Potter, Percy Jackson is a perennial underdog who learns to his amazement that he has both unusual powers and a storied legacy. Like Harry Potter, the Percy Jackson book franchise took the YA market by storm, wooing young readers around the world. But while Harry Potter revolves around the life of a young wizard transplanted into a school for magic, Percy Jackson has its origins rooted firmly in Greek mythology.

Percy discovers that he is actually the demigod son of Poseidon, and is sent away for his own protection to what is essentially a summer camp for all the wayward half-human offspring of the gods. As the son of one of the three most powerful gods — all of whom took a vow not to father any more demigod children, for the good of everyone — Percy has an immediate target on his back. Almost like he’s “the Chosen One.”

Watch on Disney Plus

The House with a Clock In Its Walls

(Image credit: Universal)

The parallels between The House with a Clock In Its Walls and Harry Potter are myriad. Both feature young orphans sent off to live with their oddball relations as a result of a car crash that killed their parents (or at least, that’s the party line in Harry Potter, even if it turns out not to be true). In both films, said orphan inadvertently discovers a world of magic at their fingertips, and is forced to do battle with the forces of darkness to protect those around them.

Unlike Harry Potter, however, The House with a Clock In Its Walls was only ever intended to be a standalone film, despite interest from many fans in a sequel to further explore the adventures of its young wizarding hero.

Rent/buy from Amazon or Apple

Hugo

(Image credit: Alamy)

In terms of plot, Hugo doesn’t have much in common with Harry Potter — except for the fact that it’s based on a popular children’s book, and it’s about a young orphan boy who discovers magic. Hugo (Asa Butterfield) lives alone in a bustling Parisian train station, narrowly evading the security guard who is determined to catch him.

He befriends a grumpy toymaker (Ben Kingsley) and his granddaughter (Chloe Grace Moretz), only to discover that the bitter old man is actually Georges Melies, the famed father of silent film in France. Directed by Martin Scorsese with a playfully imaginative eye, Hugo captures the journey of its young protagonist to help Melies rediscover the magic of cinema — something that Scorsese hopes to impart to the audience, as well.

Watch on Paramount Plus

Beautiful Creatures

(Image credit: Alamy)

Who needs a stodgy old British boarding school setting for their magic when they can have a Southern gothic? Beautiful Creatures revolves around a teenage girl, Lena Duchannes, whose life will change forever once she reaches her 16th birthday. Cursed with supernatural powers beyond her control, she will be claimed for either the light or the dark, as each of her family members has been before her.

It takes the magic of Harry Potter and its central battle between the powers of good and evil, and injects scintillating family drama into the proceedings. Then, for good measure, it’s peppered with the kind of star-crossed romance that made Twilight all the rage at the time.

Watch on Max

Miss Peregrine’s School for Peculiar Children

(Image credit: Alamy)

What if Harry Potter didn’t take place in a grand castle in the Scottish countryside, but in a small institution for children with special abilities? The result might look something like Miss Peregrine’s School for Peculiar Children, where Jake (Asa Butterfield) travels back in time to 1943 to discover a cozy English home occupied by a group of children with unusual qualities (one can breathe underwater, for example, while another has the power to bring the dead back to life) and their caretaker, Miss Peregrine (Eva Green).

The entire school exists within a time bubble, where the strange inhabitants can be protected from the dangers of the outside world, and malevolent forces that threaten to hunt them down. In terms of world-building and magical ambiance, Miss Peregrine’s School for Peculiar Children matches the best that Harry Potter can offer.

Watch on Disney Plus

Young Sherlock Holmes

(Image credit: Alamy)

Young Sherlock Holmes may not take place in a world of magic, but it nonetheless has more than a passing similarity with Harry Potter. In detailing one of the teenage Sherlock Holmes’ first ever cases, it features a trio of heroes: A lanky ginger, a short, bespectacled boy with brown hair, and a bushy haired female sidekick. (And that’s to say nothing of the film’s swotty blond antagonist, who bears a striking resemblance to Draco Malfoy.)

It captures the classically British boarding school experience, and there’s a reason it’ll look familiar to Harry Potter fans: It was directed by Christopher Columbus a decade and a half before he helmed the first two Harry Potter movies. His stylistic choices from Young Sherlock Holmes have echoes in Harry Potter, from its castle-like boarding school aesthetic to the long tables of the student dining hall.

Watch on Prime Video

The Neverending Story

(Image credit: Alamy)

Back in the early 2000s, A Series of Unfortunate Events was one of Harry Potter’s main competitors when it came to kids’ fantasy books about ill-fated orphans. It revolves around the three Baudelaire children (Violet, Klaus, and baby Sunny), who lose their parents in a mysterious fire. They’re taken in by Count Olaf (Jim Carrey, who must have gotten a stomach ache from chewing on all the scenery), a distant relation who has nefarious intentions for his new wards. What sets A Series of Unfortunate Events apart from other films in the same genre is that it has a pitch black sense of humor, putting its young heroes in endlessly bleak circumstances while still giving a wink to the audience.

Watch on Max

Forget Hogwarts Legacy — this leaked Harry Potter game could be even more magical

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Tue, 15 Aug 2023 04:15:00 +0000

Gamers eager to return to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter after enjoying Hogwarts Legacy earlier this year will undoubtedly be pleased to hear that the next big Harry Potter may have leaked online ahead of its official announcement.

Earlier this month an eye-eagled Reddit user claims to have spotted that the Warner Bros. South Africa Instagram account posted (and then quickly deleted) an image that may have confirmed that a new installment in the Lego Harry Potter video game series is on the way.

The teaser image includes a Harry Potter Lego Minifigure and includes the text “8.25.23.” This would presumably refer to a date, August 25, 2023. And that date just so happens to be next Friday when the Gamescom trade show will be taking place in Cologne, Germany. This would certainly suggest that a new Lego Harry Potter video could be announced during the annual trade show.

Adding further creditability to this leak is popular gaming website VGC, which claims to have spoken to “a person with knowledge of the project” who confirmed that a new Lego Harry Potter is indeed in active development. However, the source was unable to verify the legitimacy of the social media post, so there is a possibility that it's a very elaborate hoax — although we’d bet several galleons that it’s not.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)

The first Lego Harry Potter game was released during the PS3/Xbox 360 generation in 2010 and covered the boy wizard’s first four years at the magic school. A sequel, Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 followed just a year later in 2011. These two games have since been bundled together in the Lego Harry Potter Collection, which is currently available on PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. It's also playable on PS5 and Xbox Series X via backwards compatibility.

The most recent game in the long-running Lego video game franchise is Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, which launched on all modern platforms in April 2022. It was credited with revamping the traditional Lego gaming formula with various new gameplay additions including redesigned combat and an RPG-inspired upgrade system. Fortunately, the classic Lego humor remained very much unchanged.

The Skywalker Saga covered all nine Star Wars episodes, from A New Hope through to the Rise of Skywalker, and that may also be the approach taken in this leaked Lego Harry Potter game. Whereas previously Potter’s adventures were split across two separate Lego games, this time all eight movies may be combined into a single package. The game might even touch upon the events of the spin-off Fantastic Beasts franchise as well.

While those desperate for a proper Hogwarts Legacy sequel may be disappointed if the next big Harry Potter game is a Lego one, there’s definitely room for a new Lego Harry Potter game to exist alongside the best-selling open-world RPG. For starters, the Lego game would adapt the movies/books, whereas Hogwarts Legacy tells an original tale, and Lego games are more accessible for younger players and families.

In other Harry Potter gaming news, Warner Bros. Entertainment formally announced Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions back in April. This multiplayer sports game is currently being developed by Unbroken Studios and is set to release on PC and consoles at an unspecified date. However, you can sign up for the chance to partake in upcoming playtests right now.

Max's Harry Potter television series sounds like the worst idea ever

Henry T. Casey — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 04:00:03 +0000

Am I being hyperbolic to say that a new Harry Potter series coming at the Max streaming service (that's the new version of HBO Max that debuts on May 23rd) sounds like the worst idea I've ever heard of? Possibly.

But I can't stop thinking it, so I'll own my confidence that Warner Bros. Discovery's big decade-long bet on a TV series that adapts the seven Harry Potter books is the worst (if not one of the top 5 worst) ideas I've heard in ages.

I definitely understand the arguments that nobody should try and get into more business with Potter-verse author (and executive producer) J.K. Rowling because of the views about trans women and men she espouses.

You don't even need to bring that up, though. The Harry Potter series seems like a big mistake for other reasons, and here's why:

It's too soon for a Harry Potter reboot

(Image credit: Jim Spellman / Getty Images)

12 years. It's only been 12 years since Harry Potter and the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 hit theaters. That, alone, is too short a time window to say "let's tell that story again." It's only slightly more restrained than 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man coming five years after 2007's Spider-Man 3.

Oh, and Warner Bros. has already proven how trying to squeeze more magic from the wand doesn't work. Over the last seven years, we saw three more movies from the Potter-verse, and each reaped a lower box office haul than the one before.

You're not even telling a new story like those movies did: you're just stretching the existing books out for longer periods of time.

2016's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them made $811 million worldwide, a far cry from the final Harry Potter movie's $1.3 billion haul in 2011. Then, 2018's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald pulled in $648 million, and 2022's Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore made $404 million, less than half of the first.

So, yes this new Harry Potter series will be more detailed than the movies — a TV season gives you more time to show life at Hogwarts than a movie does. But it also just screams "shameless cash grab" as much as the Fantastic Beasts series did.

Recasting Harry Potter sounds like a nightmare

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

As someone who loved the Harry Potter books and movies when they came out (but admittedly hasn't consumed anything within the universe in ages), I have a certain affinity for the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson. And because of the popularity of the films, I'm sure I'm not alone.

And those actors practically owning those characters means casting this show is going to be a big problem. One would hope that the Harry Potter fandom would welcome a whole new cast in with welcome arms. That said, the previous cast are so fresh in our memories, so it's hard to imagine any actor trying to be "the new Harry Potter."

There's a brilliant and impressive hubris in HBO's announcement that this "Rowling’s Harry Potter books will become a decade-long series."

And it's not just for the main kids. Yes, they were able to recast Dumbledore with Michael Gambon when Richard Harris passed away, but they kinda had to — in order to stay true to the books and finish the movie. Stepping into Alan Rickman's cloak to be the new Severus Snape? That just seems like a task too tall. At best, they will be able to bring back some of the original actors for cameos in other roles — not sure who, but it sounds likely.

With a decade or two more distance between us and the original Harry Potter movies, this could make sense. But with this short window between the first eight films and this new show, I can't help but be concerned that this new batch of kids will feel like imitators, no matter how well-cast they are.

Outlook: A 10-year series order is hilariously bold

There's a brilliant and impressive hubris in HBO's announcement that this series adapting "Rowling’s Harry Potter books will become a decade-long series." Sure, they may not have financially committed to that up front — zero names are attached beyond Rowling herself — but the declaration is somewhat preposterous.

And it reminds me of Amazon committing to five whole seasons of The Rings of Power, its Lord of the Rings show.

(Image credit: Matt Grace/Prime Video)

Because as much as Amazon believes in that series? The Hollywood Reporter's sources say it only had a 37% completion rate in the U.S.. That is an abysmal number when its insiders note that 50% "would be a solid but not spectacular result." Hopefully, enough people started The Rings of Power (another big, bold bet on a beloved IP) that a third of that group is enough for Amazon to not be throwing good money after bad.

Surely, the Harry Potter series will be better than The Rings of Power, though my own personal opinion is that most shows are better than TRoP. However, there's one big difference between the two series: Amazon didn't get complete rights to the Lord of the Rings stories, and so its show has to tight-rope walk around things they can't mention. And because of that, it makes a lot of weird — and unfaithful to the material — choices along the way.

So, to the execs who are hunting for Harry Potter and the Treasure of 10 Years of TV? I gotta say: good luck. This looks like you're biting off more than even Hagrid could carry.

Warner Bros hint that a Harry Potter TV show is happening

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 11:46:09 +0000

Considering its standing as one of the biggest media franchises in the world, it’s perhaps surprising that a Harry Potter TV show hasn't already seen the light of day. However, it seems that Warner Bros. is keen to correct that curious oddity as an executive has teased there is “a lot of interest” in finally bringing the Wizarding World to the small screen.

In a recent interview with Variety, Channing Dungey, President of Warner Bros. TV, confirmed there is a “tremendous amount of ambition” to make a Harry Potter TV show happen. Dungey pointed to the success of recent Harry Potter specials on HBO Max as proof that there is an audience appetite for small-screen Potter content: “The audience is ready, they want to go, so we’re just to figure out what the right next step is.”

Last year’s Return to Hogwarts special and quiz show The Tournament of Houses were well received — even if the latter sparkled some raised eyebrows because of its inconsistent questions. But neither of them were able to generate the level of interest that an original TV series surely would, and it’s clear that Warner Bros. isn’t oblivious to the demand for further adventures in the Potter universe.

The signs are positive as Dungey told Variety that “we are engaged in a number of different conversations.” Perhaps suggesting that something could be in development already. Although if there is a Potter TV project in the works, it's at a very early stage as Dungey also noted that nothing is “imminent on the horizon.” So while a Harry Potter TV show does appear somewhat inevitable, don’t expect anything concrete for at least a few years, if not longer.

Plenty more Potter to come

Dungey's suggestions that there’s a lot of desire for more Harry Potter content line up with similar comments made by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav last month. During an investor call, Zaslav noted that “we haven’t done a Harry Potter [movie] in 15 years” before asserting that he’d like to see “if we can do something with J.K. on Harry Potter going forward.”

It would certainly seem that a biltz of Potter content could be on the horizon with Warner Bros. clearly keen on new movies and TV shows set in the Wizarding World. Although it should be noted, the spin-off Fantastic Beasts franchise came to a grinding halt earlier this year when its third entry, The Secrets of Dumbledore, underperformed at the global box office. Clearly just because something has Potter branding doesn’t mean it’s a guaranteed success.

Of course, we can’t overlook the element of controversy that now comes with the franchise. J.K. Rowling, the author of the original books and overseer of all things Potter, has made several remarks about the transgender community that have been perceived as discriminatory. This unsavory element that is now directly tied to Potter could pump the brakes on any further explorations of the universe. Although Rowling and Warner Bros. issued a joint statement in December 2021 saying their partnership was “more collaborative than ever.”

The wait for a Harry Potter TV show is almost certainly going to be a long one but eager fans will be able to pass the time with the new Hogwarts Legacy video game. Scheduled to release in February next year, it looks like the most exciting thing to come out of the Wizarding World franchise in more than a decade. If it's a success, Warner Bros. may fast-track a Potter TV show pronto.

The Harry Potter movies are leaving HBO Max soon — this is their new home

Henry T. Casey — Tue, 02 Aug 2022 14:40:52 +0000

Update: More HBO Max bad news - new movies no longer guaranteed.

The original Harry Potter movies will hop aboard a broom to fly from HBO Max later this month. Yes, all eight of the classic fantasy adventure films starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint will no longer be found on the best streaming service on August 31.

That's the bad news (h/t to our sister site GamesRadar). The good news, however, is that the films are already on their new home — and that new home is cheaper than HBO Max. So, while some HBO Max subscribers may feel like they're getting less for their $10 (for ad-supported HBO Max) to $15 (ad-free HBO Max) monthly payment, they can still see those movies for even less on Peacock.

Unfortunately, those who want to watch the Harry Potter movies in order will need the $5 per month Peacock Premium tier, so you can't watch them on Peacock's free tier. If you want to see the films without ads, you'll need to get the $10 per month Peacock Premium Plus (though "Peacock channels, events and a few shows and movies" do have ads).

This isn't the first time Harry Potter's left HBO Max. As GR points out, the film series left HBO Max for Peacock in the summer of 2020, 90 days after HBO's new service launched. They returned to HBO Max in September 2021, and this current Peacock run began on July 1, 2022. And while it's very much like what you see on Netflix, where films come and go, this feels different, and kind of wrong.

Analysis: Would Disney Plus let Harry Potter go?

One thing we'll always give Disney Plus credit for is that they hold onto their big movies. Disney Plus is where you watch the Star Wars movies in order, it has nearly all of the Marvel movies (save Sony's Spider-Man movies and Fox's Hulk film), all the Pixar movies and so on. And they've never allowed any to slip from their grip.

Meanwhile, this is yet another instance of the Harry Potter films — which are Warner Bros. Pictures films — leaving HBO Max. And this service seems like it should be the permanent home for the films, as it is under the Warner Bros. Discovery umbrella. Maybe some people don't associate this film series with the studio, and therefore the streaming service, but it's certainly odd to see them part ways (again).

As noted above, films leave streaming services all the time, but one would have thought Warner would see Harry Potter as an important part of HBO Max. The only reasonable solution is that Peacock probably made a compelling offer for exclusivity, which will begin once the films leave at the end of the month.

If the Harry Potter films come back to HBO Max — and why wouldn't they? — we expect they'd return for the eventual HBO Max and Discovery Plus merger, as the two are meant to become a mega-service sooner or later.

I found the perfect game to pass the time until Hogwarts Legacy finally launches

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 09:01:53 +0000

What we're playing

Welcome! This column is part of a regular series in which we share what members of the Tom's Guide staff are playing and enjoying right now, with an eye towards helping you find great games that you may have missed. Be sure to check out our recent entry, where we talk about Spellforce 3.

As the self-declared biggest Harry Potter fan in the Tom’s Guide office — a title that comes with far more uncomfortable baggage than I’d like — I'm finding the wait for Hogwarts Legacy to be almost unbearable. I talk about my excitement for the upcoming Harry Potter RPG so often that at least one of my colleagues is ready to throttle me if I mention the game again.

My hype continues to bubble, but there's only so many times I can rewatch the recently-released gameplay trailer (I must be hitting double-figures by now). So, in order to pass the time until the game’s release date, tentatively scheduled for holiday 2022, I decided I need to find a distraction in the form of another Harry Potter game that I could play right now.

Curiously, for a franchise as popular as Harry Potter, the Wizarding World remains largely unexplored in the medium of video games. In fact, over the last decade, there have been exactly three Harry Potter games released on console.

One of these was a shovelware Xbox Kinect title, one was a shovelware title for Sony’s PlayStation Move peripherals, and the other was LEGO Harry Potter Collection — a repacking of two games originally released in 2010 and 2011 respectively. My options were pretty slim.

Seeing as I had no desire to explore the Wizarding World using either the Xbox Kinect sensor or a PlayStation Move controller, my decision was an easy one. LEGO Harry Potter Collection it was, and so last week I purchased a copy for the Nintendo Switch. And much to my delight it’s filling the void quite nicely.

LEGO Harry Potter is charming and funny

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)

LEGO Harry Potter Collection bundles together 2010’s LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4 and 2011’s LEGO Harry Potter Years 5-7, allowing players to adventure through Harry’s entire school career in a single package.

Considering that both games are more than a decade old at this point, it’s quite remarkable how well they’ve held up. Perhaps that’s more a testament to how timeless the LEGO game formula is, but even visually the collection looks great on a standard Switch display. The plastic characters are ridiculously adorable, and even the more realistic backgrounds look pretty good if a little lacking in detail.

it’s a delight to explore the iconic Wizarding World even in a more simplistic plastic brick form.

I'm also pleasantly surprised by just how humorous the LEGO Harry Potter games are. Each movie in the Harry Potter series is retold without any voice acting, instead cutscenes tell the story by combining visual gags with pantomiming mini-figures. Seeing iconic moments from the Harry Potter movies play out in this form is always a hoot.

If you’ve somehow never played a LEGO game before, the formula is simple. Each book/movie is split into six levels, where you’re tasked with solving basic puzzles, engaging in even more basic combat and generally smashing everything in sight in order to collect lego studs which act as currency.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)

Outside of levels, you can explore iconic locations from the Harry Potter universe including Hogwarts castle, Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. Plus, there’s so much to collect it’s actually pretty overwhelming.

The best collectibles are of course the plethora of playable characters, of which there are over 200 to unlock. These range from the expected picks like Dumbledore to the slightly more obscure ones such as Doris Crockford — 10 points to Gryffindor if you know who that is.

As a LEGO game designed very much for younger players, LEGO Harry Potter isn’t challenging in the slightest. The only time my progress has been halted has been when I’ve encountered one of the game’s annoyingly frequent bugs. Nevertheless, it’s still extremely charming and, for a fan like me, it’s a delight to explore the iconic Wizarding World even in a more simplistic plastic brick form.

Surprisingly, I’m finding the LEGO Harry Potter Collection very much at home on the Nintendo Switch as well. Because of its kid-friendly design, it doesn’t manage to hold my attention for very long. However, the portable nature of the Switch means I’m usually only playing in sessions that last less than half an hour. This is helping to stave off any feelings of tedium as I slowly make my way through the game’s wealth of (pretty repetitive) content.

But I need Hogwarts Legacy soon

(Image credit: Avalanche Software/WB Games)

While I’m enjoying my time with LEGO Harry Potter, and at my current pace I probably won’t have completed the game until the winter months, the game is only serving to make me even more excited for Hogwarts Legacy.

The idea of exploring a more visually-impressive Hogwarts castle, with a rich cinematic story, proper side-quests to complete, more complex gameplay and a deep upgrades system as well, has me positively bursting with anticipation. LEGO Harry Potter is a nice appetizer, but Hogwarts Legacy is the full meaty main course that I’m really craving.

Unfortunately, just when I’ll get to enjoy that entree remains a mystery. Developer Avalanche Software and publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment are being frustratingly tight-lipped on when gamers can expect to actually have Hogwarts Legacy in their hands. But until that date, I’ll be chipping away at LEGO Harry Potter and enjoying my time in its plastic-brick recreation of the Wizarding World all the same.

LEGO Harry Potter is also helping pass the time until The Last of Us Part I hits the PS5. Sure, it's a completely unnecessary remake but I'll still be playing it on day one when it launches in September.

The Secrets of Dumbledore is a two and a half hour course correction — and that's OK

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 04:30:25 +0000

The last few years haven’t been especially kind to Harry Potter fans. Between the lackluster Fantastic Beasts movie franchise, the extremely polarizing Cursed Child stage production and J.K Rowling’s controversial social media comments, it’s no wonder that interest in the Wizarding World seems to be at an all-time low.

I’ve spent the last six or so years being at best disappointed in each new slice of the Wizarding World offered up and at worst downright ashamed to acknowledge my Potter fandom. So, it’s not an understatement to say I went into Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore with expectations levels practically on the floor.

Much to my surprise, I came away energized about the Wizarding Word in a way I’ve not been for several years. Yes, declaring yourself a Harry Potter fan continues to come with more baggage than I’d like, but in the wake of The Secrets of Dumbledore the series is finally in a good place again and for the first time in forever I’m excited to see where things go next.

Fantastic Beasts stumbled right out of the gate

I think the biggest compliment I can muster to describe 2016’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is it's entirely inoffensive. It’s a bland, but functional, blockbuster. It seriously lacks compelling characters (bar Dan Fogler’s lovable muggle Jacob Kowalski), but it’s functional and I mostly enjoyed its exploration of the larger Wizarding World.

Its sequel, Fantastic Beasts: The Crime of Grindelwald, to put it bluntly, is a train-wreck. It feels hamstrung by a desire to be both a follow-up to the first Fantastic Beasts movie and a Harry Potter prequel of sorts focused on a young Dumbledore and his fight against the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald.

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

The plot is a convoluted mess of rapid-fire exposition and weird side stories that serve seemingly little purpose. Case in point, the whole subplot about Credence’s (Erza Miller) true linage feels like an unnecessary tangent. It’s not helped by the ultimate revelation about switched babies feels like something out of a bad Agatha Christie novel.

I could easily go on a long rant about all the issues and missteps within The Crimes of Grindelwald, but it’s a four-year-old movie that has been dissected plenty at this point. Let’s just skip ahead and say, in the wake of the second entry in the Fantastic Beasts series the franchise already appeared to be on life support.

Secrets of Dumbledore is a course correction

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore feels like 142 minutes of necessary course correction. It’s by no means a fantastic film, it suffers greatly for the sins of its predecessor, but pleasingly by the time the credits roll the Fantastic Beasts series is in a better place than started, which should be chalked up as a victory.

One of the biggest improvements in the Secrets of Dumbledore comes from the decision to recast Grindelwald. The switch to Mads Mikkelsen from Johnny Depp pays off in spades. Mikkelsen gives Grindelwald a genuinely terrifying edge, and the opening sequence between him and Jude Law’s Dumbledore is probably my favorite in the entire Fantastic Beasts trilogy.

(Image credit: Warner Bros)

Secrets of Dumbledore also finally puts the fun back into the Wizarding World. While the Harry Potter movies go to some dark places on occasion, it’s primarily a film series that can be enjoyed by the whole family and the second Fantastic Beasts movie seemed to forget that. The third one remembers, and adds in several spectacular set pieces that had me grinning in my theatre seat.

I’m still not totally convinced that the likes of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and Kowalski need to be involved in the wizarding war with Grindelwald, as they still feel ill-suited to the story. But I’ve made my peace with their inclusion and accept that for better or worse, they are core cast members of this tale now.

(Image credit: Jaap Buitendijk)

As noted the film is by no means perfect, there’s plenty of baggage from The Crime of Grindelwald that needs mopping up. For starters, the illogical decision to have Queenie Goldstein (Alison Sudol) join Grindelwald’s side at the end of the previous movie is a real blight on Secrets of Dumbledore. Although, I was pleased that Credence plays a smaller role than you might expect, and seems to have been taken off the board for the next film.

Unfortunately, Fantastic Beasts The Secrets of Dumbledore is forced to spend so much time rewriting confusing plots points laid out by its predecessor that it does struggle to carve out its own identity. Not to mention, it includes some rather bizarre plotting of its own (like the prominence of the Qilin creatures), but it’s the best Fantastic Beasts movie to date. Granted, that is not a high bar to clear, but at this point, expectations have to be lowered to such a degree that even that is a win.

The Wizarding World could have a bright future

The main reason that Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore has me hyped is for the potential of what could come next. It seems like the series has finally got all its main players when they need to be, and if the next film can be a bit more focused, we could, at last, get a film that measures up to the legendary Harry Potter series.

(Image credit: Warner Bros. Pictures)

Of course, a fourth Fantastic Beasts film even happening at this point doesn't seem to be a certainty. The disappointing reception to The Crimes of Grindelwald appears to have badly dented the enthusiasm surrounding the franchise, and The Secrets of Dumbledore’s early overseas box office takings have been disappointing (in the UK it opened to half as much as its predecessor). WB’s resolve to see through the planned five-film saga could be seriously tested over the coming months.

It would be a cruel twist if just as the franchise maneuvers itself into a position to kick on and end strong, the rug was pulled and the remaining two Fantastic Beasts films were canceled. Hopefully, audiences will rally around Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, if only so we might get to see what comes next.

Looking beyond the future of the Fantastic Beasts film series, Harry Potter fans also have the Hogwarts Legacy video game to look forward to. Which could offer the virtual recreation of the iconic wizarding school that many of us have dreamed about for more than a decade. That game is currently scheduled to release in holiday 2022 on just about every platform out there.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore — the first reactions are in

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:18:12 +0000

It’s fair to say the anticipation levels for Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore are fairly low right now. The third entry in the Harry Potter prequel series is paying for the sins of its poorly-received predecessor, and the increasingly controversial comments from Wizarding World creator J.K. Rowling aren’t exactly helping matters.

The Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailers have teased at an ambitious attempt to bring back the magic of the beloved Harry Potter series. However, there are understandable concerns from fans about all the baggage the poorly-plotted Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald has left this movie to carry.

Perhaps these fears have been a little overstated as the film had its premier this week and various critics in attendance have been permitted to share their first reaction, and in a shocking twist, they’re mostly positive.

In fact, The Secrets of Dumbledore is being lauded as the best Fantastic Beasts movie so far. Arguably not the highest bar to clear, but welcome news all the same.

What critics are saying about Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Ian Sandwell of Digital Spy called the third entry in the Fantastic Beasts series an “improvement” on its predecessor, and also notes that Mads Mikkelsen, who is taking over the role of Grindelwald from Johnny Depp, is “a huge upgrade.” Although, it’s not an entirely positive reaction as he does note it’s “overstuffed” and “unsure if it’s a Beasts film or a Harry Potter film.”

#FantasticBeastsTheSecretsOfDumbledore is an improvement on the sequel, even if it only fleetingly recaptures the magic. Mads Mikkelsen is a huge upgrade, but the MVP is Jessica Williams's Lally. It's just overstuffed and unsure if it's a Beasts film or a Harry Potter film. pic.twitter.com/65HeyIgeXbMarch 29, 2022

Perri Nemiroff of Collider calls The Secrets of Dumbledore a “big bounce back” for the series and reports it’s “far more engaging” than the previous film. Nemiroff also notes that the adorable Niffler steals the show once again.

#SecretsOfDumbledore is a big bounce back for the #FantasticBeasts series for me! Back to enjoying the group dynamic & caring about the main mission. A lil thin here & there but a FAR more engaging ride than the last. Dan Fogler continues to be a favorite … and the Niffler. pic.twitter.com/QBkyMOq4UTMarch 29, 2022

YouTuber and podcaster David Lee ranks the latest Wizarding World adventure as “leagues above the previous and probably the best Fantastic Beasts so far.” The comment about some “amazing duels” in particular has us very excited.

The #SecretsOfDumbledore is an exciting and enjoyable Wizarding World adventure. Thankfully, leagues above the previous, it’s probably the best Fantastic Beasts so far. Great character work, fun adventure, and amazing duels. Fans should really enjoy this one! pic.twitter.com/M56qR8L0KCMarch 29, 2022

Anyone worried that the film would be negatively impacted by the half-baked plot points set up in The Crimes of Grindelwald can rest easy. According to Xandra Harbet of Looper, the film “rectifies the fans’ biggest qualms with FB2,” and also offers “answers, ground breaking moments and epic battles.”

#SecretsOfDumbledore is a magical menagerie of homages to the Potter films, boasting a new slate of wondrous creatures and mythos.@FantasticBeasts 3 rectifies fans' biggest qualms with FB2, offering answers, groundbreaking moments, & epic battles in this love letter to misfits. pic.twitter.com/VlZlQDgCj5March 29, 2022

Finally, Griffin Schiller of FilmSpeak salutes screenwriter Steve Kloves as he “miraculously salvages a sinking ship.” The first two Fantastic Beasts movies were solely penned by J.K. Rowling, but Kloves came on board as a co-writer for The Secrets of Dumbledore after adapting all by one of the Harry Potter books for the screen.

Steve Kloves miraculously salvages a sinking ship w/#FantasticBeasts3 but it doesn’t fully fix the larger issues w/the series. Still, by far the best of the 3. The series feels FUN again. The layers of ##Dumbledore are peeled back & explored in interesting ways. Had a good time! pic.twitter.com/ZAvIfNHzEEMarch 29, 2022

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is currently scheduled to hit theatres on April 15 (A week earlier in the U.K. on April 8). It will see Eddie Redmayne return as magical zoologist Newt Scamander with Jude Law’s younger Albus Dumbledore also having a larger part to play. Other returning faces include Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Callum Turner, Jessica Williams and Katherine Waterston.

Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore release date, cast and more

kelly.woo@futurenet.com (Kelly Woo) — Mon, 28 Feb 2022 17:16:54 +0000

Fantastic Beasts 3 is winging into theaters sooner than expected — and the sequel finally has a title. The movie, called The Secrets of Dumbledore, has moved up to an April 2022 release. And the latest Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailer is here to make this movie feel like a winner.

The next installment of the Fantastic Beasts franchise recast Grindelwald, replacing Johnny Depp with Mads Mikkelson. The rest of the cast will be back, including Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander and Jude Law as Albus Dumbledore.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 3 follows the 2016 first film and 2018's Crimes of Grindelwald. The franchise follows the adventures of Newt and magical friends in the Harry Potter universe, several decades before the Boy Who Lived discovered he was a wizard.

The spinoffs have been a success, grossing nearly $1.5 billion at the global box office. And they've proven that the Harry Potter universe can be extended beyond adaptions of the original book series.

Here's everything we know so far about Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore.

Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore release date

The current Fantastic Beasts 3 release date is April 15, 2022. But the U.K. will see the movie arrive April 8.

That means nearly three and a half years will have passed since the second film, Crimes of Grindelwald.

The movie's initial release date was Nov. 12, 2021. However, Warner Bros.' decision to recast Depp as well as the coronavirus pandemic led the studio to push the date back to July 15, 2022. Then, Warner Bros moved it up to Easter weekend.

In the mean time, check out our guide for how to watch Harry Potter movies in order to see the rest (we recommend doing so on the best streaming devices). We're also tracking the latest Hogwarts Legacy game news.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailers

The second official Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailer focuses on the wizarding war, giving fans of the Harry Potter movie something familiar (with less beasts, more rivalries). Mads Mikkelsen looks truly menacing as Gellert Grindelwald.

The first trailer, which merely teases the wizarding war, is basically the Ocean's Eleven trailer, as the good wizards are building a team to fight the battle. We also see a lot of monsters, and an awkward crab-walk.

Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore cast

The cast of Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore is led by Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, a British Ministry of Magic employee in the Beasts Division of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

Jude Law also stars as a younger Albus Dumbledore, who was played by Richard Harris and Michael Gambon in the Harry Potter movies. Law's version is a professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

They are joined by Mads Mikkelsen, a new cast member, as Gellert Grindelwald. More on him below.

Other Fantastic Beasts 3 cast members include:

Katherine Waterston as Tina Goldstein, an auror with the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA) and Newt's eventual wife.
Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski, a No-Maj friend of Newt and bakery owner
Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein, Tina's sister and a powerful Legilimens who takes Grindelwald's side
Ezra Miller as Credence Barebone / Aurelius Dumbledore, the disturbed adopted child of Mary-Lou Barebone and lost brother of Albus
Callum Turner as Theseus Scamander, Newt's older brother and employee in the British Ministry of Magic. Former fiancee of Leta Lestrange
William Nadylam as Yusuf Kama, a French-Senegalese wizard
Kevin Guthrie as Abernathy, a former employee at MACUSA
Poppy Corby-Tuech as Vinda Rosier, a loyal follower of Grindelwald
Jessica Williams as Professor Eulalie "Lally" Hicks, a professor of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Victoria Yeates as Bunty, Newt's assistant
Oliver Masucci as Head of the International Confederation of Wizards

Fantastic Beasts 3 Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald

Fantastic Beasts 3 has recast the role of Gellert Grindelwald. The dark wizard will now be played by Mads Mikkelsen, a Danish actor and former gymnast most famous in the U.S. for starring in the series Hannibal. He recently earned a BAFTA nomination for Another Round, which won Best International Film at the 2021 Oscars.

Mikkelsen replaces Johnny Depp, who was asked by Warner Bros. to step down after he lost a libel lawsuit. He had sued British tabloid The Sun for calling him a "wife beater," in the contentious fallout after his divorce from Amber Heard.

Depp resigned at Warner Bros.' request after having filmed one scene as Grindelwald. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he will still be paid his full salary, however, to fulfill the terms of his contract.

Mikkelsen spoke to GamesRadar about taking over the role "Obviously I have only been part of it for half the time that the rest of the gang has. It was a lovely experience," he said. "I think they had a really great script; a great, solid story."

Mikkelsen knows a little something about making a character his own, following another actor. After all, it's not easy playing Hannibal after Anthony Hopkins.

"This is obviously a more direct comparison because it’s the next film," Mikkelsen explained. "So we have done a few bridges that will allow us to recognize it, but we’ve also said we have to make it our own. I have been a fan of Johnny Depp since I saw him as a young man, and to try to bring his intensity and his way of doing it into my work is a no-go. I have to find my own, because his is unique, and I just have to let that be, and find a different path."

Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore plot and timeline

Not a ton is known about the plot Fantastic Beasts 3, but an interview, cast member Dan Fogler revealed that the movie takes place partly in Brazil. He also teased that it's set in 1939 before World War II.

The first film was set in 1926 in New York, while the second film took place in 1927, mostly in Paris. If Fantastic Beasts 3 does take place in 1939, that's quite a time jump. But the franchise does need to get to 1945, which is the year of Grindelwald and Dumbledore's infamous duel.

The Crimes of Grindelwald ended with the dark wizard using the fear of a world war to gather more followers to his cause. Two of those followers are Queen and Credence (for different reasons). Added to all this is that one of Newt's Niffler friends stole the blood pact between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.

Fantastic Beasts 3 could build on this and show that Grindelwald has amassed quite a lot of power in five to six years and has stoked fears to the point of WWII. Maybe he's behind the rise of Hitler and the Nazis. Meanwhile, we may see Newt and his friends searching the world for the blood pact so that Dumbledore is released from it and can eventually duel Grindelwald.

Looking for something else to stream while you wait? Check out our guide on how to watch the Marvel movies in order.

New Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailer brings that Harry Potter magic back

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Mon, 28 Feb 2022 17:02:48 +0000

A new look at Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore has just been conjured up, and this fairly lengthy trailer appears to hit all the right notes for loyal Harry Potter fans. But arguably what is most exciting about this three-minute long preview is what’s not included, namely the distinctive lack of fantastic beasts.

The trailer features plenty of call backs to the original Harry Potter series (even opening with archive footage of Michael Gambon as Albus Dumbledore) not to mention plenty of impressive looking spell-casting, but unlike the film's first trailer there is a very noticeable lack of magical creatures in this one.

There is still footage showcasing Pickett the Bowtruckle and a very cute niffler, plus a majestic looking phoenix (presumably Dumbledore's pet Fawkes) closes out the trailer, but otherwise the focus is placed squarely on the human characters. This is no bad thing, as the split focus between fantastic beasts and the larger wizarding war was a common criticism of this film’s predecessor Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

This trailer could indicate that the balance in this threequel will be tipped in favor of the humans of the wizarding world, rather than its animal inhabitants. Of course, as noted, the first trailer did more heavily feature fantastic beasts, so there is a possibility that this trailer is just smartly edited to highlight Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and pals in an effort to appease skeptical audience members.

The Secrets of Dumbledore is the third film in the Fantastic Beasts film series will see magizoologist Newt Scamander team up with a younger Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) in order to stand against the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen) and his army of loyal followers. As this trailer, and just about every piece of marketing material has suggested, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry will feature prominently.

The film will see Mikkelsen replace Johnny Depp, who played Grindelwald in the franchise’s previous two installments. This isn’t the only notable change in this third outing. Original Harry Potter author and highly controversial public figure, J.K. Rowling, has been taken off sole screenwriting duties, and has instead co-written The Secrets of Dumbledore alongside Steve Kloves who adapted all but one of the original Harry Potter books into movies.

Otherwise the film will see plenty of returning faces with Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Callum Turner, and Katherine Waterston all reprising their roles, not to mention David Yates is once again behind the camera— this will be his seventh directional effort in the Harry Potter franchise.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is scheduled to hit theaters on April 8, 2022, but in the meantime you can watch the HBO Max Harry Potter reunion special now or why not revisit the original Harry Potter movies?

You'll find the entire collection on both HBO Max ($9.99 and up) and Peacock (which has both free and paid tiers).

How to watch Harry Potter movies in order

kelly.woo@futurenet.com (Kelly Woo) — Tue, 15 Feb 2022 17:36:12 +0000

If you want to watch the Harry Potter movies in order on a streaming service, you're in luck. There are two ways to access Platform 9 3/4 from a subscription service. The original eight films based on the seven Harry Potter books are two of the very best streaming services.

These movies, which brought in billions of dollars at the box office and made stars of a young cast, continue to jump between streaming services faster than you can perform Apparate. Oh, and the whole situation with the Fantastic Beasts spinoffs is similar, as they're all on that same streaming service.

The Harry Potter franchise starts with the eponymous hero at the age of 11, who discovers he's actually a wizard. He receives an invite to attend Hogwarts, under the guidance of kind Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. There, he makes friends, enters his teen years and hones his powers before facing off against the Lord Voldemort, the dark wizard who killed his parents.

As the Harry Potter-verse has grown, so too has the number of streaming options. It can be confusing to figure out where to find the Harry Potter movies and whether to stream them by release date or by the chronological timeline. That's why we've put together this guide on how to watch the the Harry Potter movies in order.

And if you're looking for more reasons to return to the Potterverse, it's time to get excited: HBO is bringing the Wizarding World back with a TV reboot, so now's the time to get caught up for when the series is set to debut.

Where to watch the Harry Potter movies in order

As of August 2023, you can still find all eight original Harry Potter movies streaming on HBO Max and Peacock.

Max is also the location of the Fantastic Beasts films and the upcoming Harry Potter TV series.

Due to various rights issues, Peacock and HBO Max have traded or shared the Harry Potter movie collection between them.

Harry Potter movies in order of release date

Watching the Harry Potter movies in release order is easy. The eight original movies came out first, then the Fantastic Beasts spinoffs.

Here's the list of films and the year of their theatrical release:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 (2010)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (2011)
Stream on Max | Peacock
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
Stream on Max
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Stream on Max
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)
Stream on: Max
Rent/buy: Amazon | Apple | YouTube

(Image credit: EA/Warner Bros.)

Harry Potter movies in order of chronological events

Now, here's where things get slightly tricky. The Fantastic Beasts films are prequels, so they take place decades before the events of the original Harry Potter movies.

Those take place during Harry's time at Hogwarts, so each book/movie corresponds to a school year. The final two movies split the final book and school year.

Here's the list of Harry Potter movies and the year in which they are set:

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (1926)
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (1927)
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (1930s)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (1991-92)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1992-93)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1992-94)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (1994-95)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (1995-96)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (1996-97)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (1997-98)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (1997-98)

Are the Harry Potter movies on Peacock or HBO Max?

Only HBO Max! At times, Peacock had the Harry Potter movies as an exclusive. Then HBO Max had them. Currently (as of June 23, 2023), only Max is are streaming the Harry Potter movies including those Fantastic Beast films.

HBO Max streamed the Harry Potter movies when it launched in summer 2020. See, WarnerMedia owns the Harry Potter film franchise. However, the corporation sold the broadcast and cable (and streaming) rights to NBCUniversal, which owns Peacock. But WarnerMedia borrowed them back — likely for a hefty fee — so that its new streaming service could launch with some big titles.

Then, the Harry Potter movies moved back to Peacock, where they streamed on and off through 2021. They returned to HBO Max over the summer. In October, both streamers have them.

And then who knows what will happen in 2025, when NBCUniversal's TV rights lapse. Will they ever become the best Netflix movies? Only time will tell.

One user on X (formerly Twitter) joked, "Harry Potter is like the child of a divorce where the parents are Universal and Warner Bros and the franchise just keeps being pulled to different homes."

So many streaming services, all fighting over the same valuable IP.

Hogwarts Legacy could be in trouble and delayed until 2023

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Tue, 18 Jan 2022 10:33:00 +0000

Hogwarts Legacy, the upcoming open-world RPG set in the Harry Potter world, appears to be facing serious development issues. The behind-the-scenes troubles are apparently so severe that the game is set to be delayed beyond its current 2022 release window.

First announced during the PS5 Showcase in September 2020, Hogwarts Legacy was originally confirmed for a 2021 release. However, in early January and developer Avalanche Software confirmed the game had been moved back to 2022. Now it appears Hogwarts Legacy has been delayed further into 2023, according to one industry insider.

Colin Moriarty, previously of IGN and now the host of the popular Sacred Symbols podcast, noted on the show’s latest episode that “[Hogwarts Legacy] isn’t coming out this year” and that the game is “in some sort of trouble.” Moriarty’s industry sources are usually pretty reliable, so this information seems to be more than pure speculation.

While passionate Potterheads will no doubt be disappointed at the news, the writing did seem to be on the wall with this one. After debuting a well-received announcement trailer in 2021, Hogwarts Legacy has gone dark for the last 15 months. During that time fans have been desperate for additional information but none was forthcoming. In fact, the game’s official Twitter account hasn’t directly posted since November 2020.

Currently very little is known about Hogwarts Legacy. It’s been confirmed that it will be an open-world title that allows you to create your own character and explore famous locations from the Wizarding World. It will also apparently offer an inclusive character creator as an answer to Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling’s widely criticized comments on transgender people.

More information about the title was expected in early 2022, though perhaps if this claim of a further delay is true the wait will be extended several more months. We suggest rebooking your Hogwarts Express ticket, it looks like our adventure to the famous school of witchcraft and wizardry could be further away than anticipated.

In the meantime, those itching for some magic can still enjoy the Harry Potter reunion special on HBO Max, not to mention rewatching the Harry Potter movies for likely the tenth time. Even if Hogwarts Legacy does slip into 2023, we are guaranteed one slice of the Wizarding World at the very least as Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is set to hit theatres in April.

How to watch Harry Potter reunion now

kelly.woo@futurenet.com (Kelly Woo) — Sun, 02 Jan 2022 12:25:51 +0000

it’s time to watch the Harry Potter reunion online, which lives up to the hype with candid interviews of all the stars and great behind-the-scenes tidbits.

HBO Max is hosting Harry Potter 20th anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, which features Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and other major cast members (as well as crew). But the streaming service to watch the Harry Potter reunion will vary based on where you are.

Harry Potter reunion release time and date

Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts began streaming on HBO Max at 3 a.m. ET on Saturday (Jan. 1).

This Harry Potter reunion is celebrating the 20th anniversary release of The Sorcerer's Stone, which is available — like all the Harry Potter movies in order — on HBO Max. Back in 2001, Radcliffe, Watson and Grint were just kids waving around wands. Now, they're full-grown adults with thriving acting careers. They get back together to reminisce about the film franchise that changed their lives and made a massive impact on viewers around the world.

The main trio is joined by other cast members, including Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Ralph Fiennes, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Mark Williams, Bonnie Wright, Alfred Enoch, Ian Hart, Toby Jones, Matthew Lewis, and Evanna Lynch. Also on hand are producer David Heyman and filmmakers Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuarón, Mike Newell and David Yates. Author J.K. Rowling makes an appearance via archival footage.

Expect tributes to the late Alan Rickman, Richard Harris and other departed film contributors.

Here's what you need to watch Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, which is one of our top picks for new movies and shows to watch this weekend. Also check out our guide to Cutting the cord in 2022 — this is my top pick to kill cable.

How to watch Harry Potter reunion online in the U.S.

In the U.S., Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts will stream on HBO Max.

The special drops on Saturday, January 1 at 3 a.m. ET. It has a run time of 1 hour 45 min.

As an HBO Max Original, the Harry Potter reunion is available on the ad-supported version of HBO Max. If you haven't signed up yet, what are you waiting for? HBO Max is No. 1 on our list of the best streaming services.

Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide on how to watch RuPaul's Drag Race season 14.

HBO Max is our favorite streaming service for its vast, high-quality library, including all of HBO’s prestige series like Game of Thrones and Succession. They also offer recent hit movies like The Matrix 4, classic series like Friends and their own originals like And Just Like That. HBO Max costs $15 per month (or $10 with ads).View Deal

Looking for something else to watch? Once the special is done, you can start rewatching the Harry Potter movies in order. And on other streamers, Cobra Kai season 4 debuted on New Year's Eve, and you can watch Book of Boba Fett right now. On regular television, get ready to watch The Bachelor season 26 starting this week.

How to watch Harry Potter reunion in Canada

Canadians can watch Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts with a subscription to Crave.

Crave has a 7-day free trial. After that, the Movies + HBO package costs $19.98 CAD per month.

If you're an American traveling abroad and want to use your HBO Max subscription, you'll need to look into the best VPN services.

How to watch Harry Potter reunion in the UK

British fans of Harry Potter can watch the reunion special on the Sky and NOW streaming platforms, starting Saturday at 8:05 a.m. GMT.

It'll also air at 8 p.m. ET Saturday on Sky Showcase.

The SkyGo app comes with any of Sky's packages and deals. You can get a Now Entertainment pass starting from £9.99 a month.

How to watch Harry Potter reunion in Australia

Aussies can stream the Harry Potter reunion special on Binge, starting Saturday at 6:01 p.m. AEST.

Binge has a 7-day free trial. After that, it costs $10 AUD for the Basic plan.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailer is exactly what Harry Potter fans wanted for Christmas

rory.mellon@futurenet.com (Rory Mellon) — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 18:17:56 +0000

The first trailer for the third entry in the Fantastic Beasts film series has hit the internet today. Titled Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, the film will see series lead Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) team up with a younger Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) in order to stand against dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen) and his army of loyal followers.

The film is a sequel to 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crime of Grindelwald, which received a rather lukewarm reception from both critics and the passionate Harry Potter fanbase. This third outing is being positioned as an effort to course-correct, as Warner Bros looks to get its Wizarding World franchise back on track.

J.K. Rowling, the author of the original Potter novels, wrote the first two Fantastic Beasts films solo but has been taken off sole screenwriting duties this time. Instead, The Secrets of Dumbledore has been co-written by Rowling alongside Steve Kloves, who penned the screenplay for every Potter film bar Order of the Phoenix.

That’s not the only change for this third installment in the franchise. Johnny Depp who played the villainous Grindelwald in the first two films has been recast. Now Mad Mikkelsen will be stepping into the role this time around. This trailer gives us our first glimpse of the veteran actor as Grindelwald, and it certainly looks like he’s up to the job of playing the tyrannical sorcerer.

The film also appears to be something of a global trotting adventure with the trailer showcasing several new Wizarding World locations, but one place that will be instantly familiar to fans is Hogwarts. The school is prominently featured in the trailer, and we can expect a sizable chunk of the proceedings to be set with the walls of the iconic castle.

It’s not just Eddie Redmayne and Jude Law who return from the previous Fantastic Beasts films. Ezra Miller, Alison Sudol, Callum Turner, and Katherine Waterston are all back. Plus, fans will be thrilled to see Dan Fogler returning as the loveable muggle Jacob Kowalski — although, it appears this time he’s been granted a wand of his own. David Yates is also back behind the camera, directing his seventh movie in the Harry Potter series.

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is scheduled to hit theaters on April 8, 2022, but Potter fans don’t need to wait that long for a dose of magical goodness. HBO Max will be airing a Harry Potter reunion special on New Year’s Day, which will surely delight fans of the boy wizard both old and new.

Looking for something else to stream while you wait? Check out our guide on what to watch tonight for our recommendations.

Harry Potter reunion Return to Hogwarts release date, cast and more

Henry T. Casey — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 14:17:12 +0000

HBO Max will start 2022 with all the fan service: you can watch a Harry Potter reunion that brings back most of the original cast, including stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. The special will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the film Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first of the series of movie adaptations of the popular books.

A press release announcing the special revealed that it will "tell an enchanting making-of story through all-new in-depth interviews and cast conversations, inviting fans on a magical first-person journey through one of the most beloved film franchises of all time." That last part sounds truly unique, but we're betting most fans will just want to see their favorite actors interact with each other. We're expecting all of the emotions to hit when the cast likely reminisce over beloved cast members Richard Harris and Alan Rickman, who have since passed away.

This kind of special is the sort of thing that will likely push fans to resubscribe to HBO Max and keep it in our best streaming services list (though the lack of day-1 release movies will hurt HBO's ranking in 2022).

And before you can ask, controversial Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling doesn't seem to be a part of the project. The press release detailing it all listed a ton of cast members for the reunion, and her name was absent from it all, save for a mention at the end about the fact that the films were based on her books.

Harry Potter reunion release date

Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts streams on HBO Max on January 1, 2022. While the press release claims that it will come out as "the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Day," that's easier said than done, what with time zones and all. While you wait for the special, you can watch all of the Harry Potter movies in order on both HBO Max and Peacock.

We'd bet the special will arrive at 3 a.m. ET, if history repeats itself. That's when most non-HBO content arrives on HBO Max, such as the Friends reunion. That same day, the Harry Potter trivia show Hogwarts Tournament of Houses will debut on HBO Max.

HBO Max is available on all of the best streaming devices. Don't have HBO Max? Well, this special will also stream in spring 2022 on TBS and Cartoon Network.

Looking for something else to watch on HBO Max while you wait? This week has another long-awaited reunion with the And Just Like That, the Sex and the City revival. And over on FXX, the chaos at Paddy's Pub continues with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 15 episodes 3 and 4.

Harry Potter reunion teaser trailer

The invitations are out, and old friends are finally catching each other's eyes on the trains, but the first teaser trailer doesn't really give us much that's new. It's mostly for airing on HBO and HBO Max for people who haven't heard, or need a reminder as to why they should hold onto their subscriptions. Check it out:

Harry Potter reunion cast

Most of the expected major names in the Potterverse are coming back for the Harry Potter reunion, starting with the core trio of Radcliffe, Grint and Watson. Notable by his absence is actor Michael Gambon, the second actor to portray Albus Dumbledore after Harris' death. Gambon has been dealing with memory loss.

Maggie Smith is also not listed.

The full (or at least announced) cast for the Return to Hogwarts special is as follows:

Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter)
Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley)
Emma Watson (Hermione Granger)
Chris Columbus (director Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)
Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange)
Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid)
Ralph Fiennes (Voldermort)
Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy)
Gary Oldman (Sirius Black)
Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge)
Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy)
Oliver Phelps and James Phelps (Fred and George Weasley)
Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley)
Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley)
Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas)
Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom)
Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood)
Ian Hart (Professor Quirrell)

Harry Potter reunion teaser

The clip that HBO Max released to promote the special doesn't show any footage of the reunited cast. Instead, it draws on nostalgia as a sort of supercut of emotional moments from the films.

A Harry Potter TV show nobody wants is coming to HBO Max

kelly.woo@futurenet.com (Kelly Woo) — Wed, 19 May 2021 15:13:59 +0000

Harry Potter is coming to HBO Max — just not the way many fans expected. The rumored Harry Potter TV show is now a reality, but it'll be in the form of an unscripted quiz show and retrospective special that will stream on HBO Max and air on Cartoon Network and TBS later this year.

Harry Potter is one of the crown jewels of IP owned by WarnerMedia, though through various contractual quirks, you have to head over to Peacock to watch the Harry Potter movies in order. Industry insiders have long predicted that WarnerMedia would bolster HBO Max with Harry Potter spinoffs, and fans hoped to see series set within that universe — like a Marauders prequel.

Instead, they're getting a quiz show. Cue the sad trombone.

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To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Warner is putting on a Wizarding World five-night event on HBO Max, Cartoon Network and TBS sometime later this year.

An untitled quiz competition will feature Potterheads answering trivia questions, with special guests making appearances. Casting is taking place now on WizardingWorld.com.

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"For fans who have always wanted to discover what it might be like to take the O.W.L. exams, this is as close as they are going to get!," Warner Bros. executive Tom Scheim said.

An online play-along component will let viewers at home participate. The four one-hour quiz specials will be followed by a film retrospective.

This is definitely not the Harry Potter TV show that Potterheads have been clamoring to see. That's not to say a scripted series wont happen; according to The Hollywood Reporter, "broad ideas have been discussed" but "the conversations are still in the extremely early stages." Warner Bros. previously denied that any Harry Potter series were in development.

So, we can still hold out hope for that Marauders prequel about young James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew solemnly swearing they are up to no good. Until then, dust off your Hogwarts robe, tap into your inner Hermione Granger and sharpen those trivia skills.

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Hogwarts Legacy game to provide transgender characters — here’s how it will work

Henry T. Casey — Tue, 02 Mar 2021 17:51:41 +0000

We have good news about the Harry Potter video game Hogwarts Legacy. According to a new report, the game will allow for character creation that gives transgender gamers the ability to see themselves in the game — no matter how they define themselves.

This news comes from Jason Schreier at Bloomberg, who has been tracking the game since it was merely a rumor. Schreier's sources revealed that users will be able "to create a character that has a masculine or feminine voice no matter what their body looks like."

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After that, gamers will decide their gender in a very Harry Potter way. You will pick one of two options — "witch" and "wizard" — and then that decides the dorm you get placed in and "how they are addressed by other characters in the game."

This appears to be an olive branch to fans who feel betrayed and scorned by Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling's tweets on transgender people. For those unfamiliar with Rowling's statements, she's infuriated many in the transgender community and allies alike. For example, Rowling voiced support for Maya Forstater, a tax specialist who was fired for transphobic language, in December 2019.

Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson publicly stated that their views differ from Rowling's.

This wasn't the only controversy surrounding Hogwarts Legacy. In February 2021, journalist Liam Robertson revealed that far-right YouTube videos were produced by Troy Leavitt, the game's lead designer. Titles included "Pretty Polys: The Myth of the Male Gaze in Video Games," "In Praise of Cultural Appropriation" and another is focused on the "Social Justice Ten Commandments."

Hogwarts Legacy was originally set to arrive this year, but it was delayed until 2021.

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