Posted in: Games, HBO, TV | Tagged: harry potter, Hogwarts Legacy

Harry Potter Show, Hogwarts Legacy Sequel Share Storytelling Elements

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment's David Haddad noted that the Harry Potter series and Hogwarts Legacy sequel will have some coordinated storytelling.

It was about two weeks ago since we last had an update to pass along regarding Warner Bros. Discovery's HBO and Warner Bros. Television's upcoming multi-season series adaptation of bestselling author J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" novels (more on that in a minute). Well, we're back with another update – but his one is a bit more "bigger picture." Earlier today, Variety ran an article examining how Warner Bros. Discovery is looking to revitalize the "Harry Potter" franchise in a big way. For example, James Phelps and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) are hosting Food Network's Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking, arriving November 14th (and also available on Max). It appears that the corporate synergy will also be strong between the sequel to Warner Bros. Games' hit video game Hogwarts Legacy (the top-selling game of 2023) and the upcoming streaming series adaptation.

"We have known for some time that fans are looking for more things in this world, and so we're spending a lot of time thinking about that," shared David Haddad, president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. "Our insights tell us that there are not huge distinctions between a younger version of a fan and an older version of a fan. They're just deep 'Harry Potter' fans, and we try to build authentic experiences to delight them." To that end, Haddad added that the team working on the sequel to the game has been coordinating "some of the big-picture storytelling elements" in the video game sequel with the storylines that will be in play during the "Harry Potter" series.

During the international television trade show MIPCOM in October, Channing Dungey, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Television Group, had some insights to share about the project. According to Dungey, the series will be "a little bit more in-depth than a two-hour film," with the series able to devote more space to tell each book's story. "We've got our fantastic writing staff in place, and they are doing what they need to do. And casting calls have opened up in the U.K. and Ireland, so the process is moving along. It's going quite well," Dungey shared. In terms of being able to adapt "Harry Potter" as a series, Dungey noted that it opens up more creative possibilities. "It's an unbelievable dream, honestly, and as somebody who is a huge fan of books, the opportunity to get to explore them in maybe a little bit more in-depth than you can in just a two-hour film, that's the whole reason we're on this journey," Dungey added.

The stories from each of Rowling's Harry Potter books will become (from the initial statement that was released when the series news first dropped) "a decade-long series produced with the same epic craft, love, and care this global franchise is known for. The series will feature a new cast to lead a new generation of fandom, full of fantastic detail, much-loved characters, and dramatic locations that Harry Potter fans have loved for over twenty-five years. Each season will be authentic to the original books and bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world, while the original, classic, and beloved films will remain at the core of the franchise and available to watch globally."

The series is written and executive-produced by showrunner Francesca Gardiner (Succession, His Dark Materials, Killing Eve). Mark Mylod (Succession, Game of Thrones, The Last of Us) will executive produce and direct multiple episodes of the series for HBO in association with Brontë Film and TV and Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive produced by J.K. Rowling, Neil Blair, and Ruth Kenley-Letts of Brontë Film and TV, and David Heyman of Heyday Films.

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