A Harry Potter TV series could be headed to HBO Max

A poster for Harry Potter And the Order Of The Phoenix

(Image credit: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

published 25 January 2021

The wizarding world may be coming to television.

A Harry Potter live-action TV show is in early development at HBO Max, The Hollywood Reporter and Variety reported on Monday.

Executives from the WarnerMedia streaming service have been holding meetings with writers to explore ideas for a possible Harry Potter show, the Reporter says, although no one has been attached, and no specific project has been ordered. Indeed, Variety emphasized the talks are "very" early, and in a statement, HBO Max and Warner Bros. said "there are no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform."

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But the Reporter writes that "expanding the world of Harry Potter remains a top priority for HBO Max and Warner Bros," even if there's no word yet on what a potential TV project might look like. This comes after last week's report that WarnerMedia is also interested in expanding another one of its fictional worlds, Game of Thrones, as Entertainment Weekly reports HBO wants to "go big on Thrones," potentially with "several" more prequel shows in addition to one that's already in the works.

For now, the Harry Potter franchise is continuing by way of the Fantastic Beasts prequel films, though the second entry in that series, The Crimes of Grindelwald, grossed less than expected at the box office in 2018. The films have also faced controversy both due to Johnny Depp's presence in them amid domestic abuse allegations that he has denied and due to anti-trans statements made by J.K. Rowling. A third entry, in which Mads Mikkelsen will take over Depp's role, is set for release in 2022.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.

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