Former Harry Potter director Chris Columbus had a steely response when asked if he wanted to be involved in the controversial HBO TV reboot of the beloved franchise.
Columbus, 66, helmed the first two films in the original series – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 2001 and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002 – but said his time navigating the wizarding world is over.
He told Variety of a possible involvement in the new series: ‘No, I’ve done it, you saw my version. There’s nothing left for me to do in the world of Potter.’
Columbus – also known for directing the Home Alone films, Mrs Doubtfire and new film The Thursday Murder Club – left the franchise due to feeling burnt out and a desire to spend more time with his young children.
He previously said: ‘I was missing dinners with them. I thought, I can’t do another six, seven, eight years of this. My kids will grow up and I’ll never get to know them.’
Alfonso Cuarón went on to direct The Prisoner Of Azkaban while Mike Newell succeeded him for The Goblet Of Fire.
Former Harry Potter director Chris Columbus had a steely response when asked if he wanted to be involved in the controversial HBO reboot of the beloved franchise – pictured August 14
Columbus, 66, helmed the first two films – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 2001 and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002 – but said his time navigating the wizarding world is over – pictured 2001 with Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint
In May this year the three lead child stars in the multimillion HBO series were finally announced after months of speculation – with Dominic McLaughlin playing protagonist Harry, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger and Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley
David Yates took the reins for The Order Of The Phoenix, The Half Blood Prince, and The Deathly Hallows Parts One and Two.
Columbus said the TV series gave a chance for previously cut plotlines to take center stage, saying: ‘The great thing about it is that with the first and second and third book, we wanted to do it all. We wanted to bring all of that onto the screen, and we didn’t have the opportunity.’
The director also criticized author J.K. Rowling who has been called a ‘bigot’ for her stance on trans issues and is involved in the new series.
Film leads Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have previously voiced support for trans people and publicly dissented against Rowling’s views.
Columbus said: ‘I like to sometimes separate the artist from the art… I certainly don’t agree with what she’s talking about. But it’s just sad.” The HBO series is set to be released in 2027.
It came after the three lead child stars were finally announced after months of speculation – with Dominic McLaughlin playing protagonist Harry, Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger and Alastair as Ron Weasley .
The young trio were selected from more than 30,000 actors who auditioned in a casting call last year, before Ron’s siblings Fred, George, Percy (Ruari Spooner) and Ginny were announced.
In the Harry Potter films, the original Weasley siblings were played by several actors.
He told Variety of a possible involvement in the new series: ‘No, I’ve done it, you saw my version. There’s nothing left for me to do in the world of Potter’ – pictured 2000 with Radcliffe
The director also criticized author J.K. Rowling who has been called a ‘bigot’ for her stance on trans issues – pictured 2004 with Radcliffe, Grint and Watson
James and Oliver Phelps played Fred and George Weasley, respectively, while Bonnie Wright played Ginny Weasley and Chris Rankin played Percy Weasley.
Rowling will serve as an executive producer on the series with HBO saying she has been ‘very very involved’ in the project to ensure will it be a ‘faithful adaptation’ of her books.
She spectacularly fell out with the three young stars of the movies over her views on transgender women. She hinted last year that she could not forgive them even if they apologised to her publicly.
The three actors, who owe their fame and fortune to their roles in the Harry Potter films, all responded to her 2020 essay calling transgender identity ‘deeply misogynistic and regressive’ with statements that were supportive of trans rights.
Harry Potter is scheduled to premiere on HBO in the United States in early 2027, with an eight-episode first season.
