Fans are getting excited about returning to Hogwarts for the Harry Potter TV series and showrunners have started their hunt for the three young actors who will play Harry, Ron and Hermione!
Francesca Gardiner, who was Succession consulting producer for Seasons 3 and 4, will be taking charge of the HBO show, with Mark Mylod, who worked with Gardiner on Succession, directing multiple episodes.
The casting call, which was issued in September 2024, confirmed it was "committed to inclusive, diverse casting".
The as-of-yet unnamed wizarding saga has been described as a "decade-long series produced with the same epic craft, love and care this global franchise is known for," according to a statement from Warner Brothers.
"The series will feature a new cast to lead a new generation of fandom, full of the fantastic detail, much-loved characters and dramatic locations that Harry Potter fans have loved for over 25 years," said the entertainment giant in a statement.
J.K. Rowling will be acting as executive producer on the live-action series, which will be based on all seven books in her series published between 1997 and 2007.
"The studio's commitment to preserving the integrity of my books is important to me," she said. "I’m looking forward to being part of this new adaptation which will allow for a degree of depth and detail only afforded by a long-form television series.”
Here's everything we know so far...
Harry Potter TV series release date
It's fair to say Warner Brothers is keen to get the show on our screens as soon as possible and filming is expected to begin in 2025.
Studio bosses have hinted the first season could premiere on HBO at some point in 2026.
When we get more details on production and an official release date, we'll be sure to let you know. Meanwhile, we'll be scouring The Daily Prophet's ad section in search if time-turner!
How many seasons of the Harry Potter TV series will there be?
Early reports suggested each season of the series would focus on one of the seven books in the Harry Potter series, but Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO, HBO & Max Content said the project would run for “10 consecutive years."
That means we can expect 10 SEASONS of the show, which would lead us to believe seasons may not be divided along the lines of J.K. Rowling's novels. Bloys has also confirmed the Fantastic Beasts novels would not be a part of the series.
What's the title of the Harry Potter TV series?
There's no news on this from HBO as of yet, but some have suggested The Boy Who Lived could be a decent title. Indeed back in 2023, a star of the original films hinted that Warner Bros. could be keen on the idea.
Harry Potter TV series plot
The plot of the upcoming Harry Potter TV series will be well known to the hundreds of millions of people who've read J.K. Rowling's books, yet fans will still be desperate for more details on this adaptation.
With some of the later films in the hit movie franchise struggling to fit all the content from the author's novels on to the screen, there should be plenty of new material on show once the series arrives.
Here's what HBO CEO Casey Bloys said about the show in a statement.
"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."
"We are delighted to give audiences the opportunity to discover Hogwarts in a whole new way. Harry Potter is a cultural phenomenon and it is clear there is such an enduring love and thirst for the Wizarding World."
Harry Potter TV series: 7 subplots we want to see!
Harry Potter TV series cast
HBO issued a casting call for young stars to play the show's three leads, Harry, Ron and Hermione, in September 2024.
To be eligible for the roles, children must be between the ages of nine and 11 in April 2025 and be residents of the UK or Ireland.
The casting call also says it is "committed to inclusive, diverse casting".
"For every role, please submit qualified performers, without regard to ethnicity, sex, disability, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other basis protected by law unless otherwise specifically indicated."
Those who wish to apply must send two self-tapes, with one being "a short poem or story" (though nothing from Harry Potter) and the second "telling us a bit about yourself, including your date of birth, height and where you live".
It also asks for children to use their own accents...
Meanwhile the internet is abuzz with rumors about who will play Albus Dumbledore and a host of other favorites from the books.
At the time of writing, Richard Harris' son Jared Harris (Mad Men) was being touted to take on his father's old role of Dumbledore, while some have suggested Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy could play Voldemort.
Meanwhile, Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz) is an early front-runner to play Rubeus Hagrid, according to some bookies.
Indeed Max is currently more concerned with trying to find a showrunner to oversee this new project...
"We have been trying to be very close to the vest," said HBO CEO Casey Bloys. "We haven’t gone out to agencies. We have our own internal process where we’ve been thinking about people but we have not wanted to go out into the world. Now that the news is out there…we’ll start going out to the business."
In a conversation with Variety in January 2024, Warner Bros. TV Group chairman Channing Dungey hinted that the search for a showrunner was still ongoing...
“We’re in conversations with a number of different writers to figure out who’s going to be the person to lead that franchise for us,” he said. “The first step for us is figuring out who this showrunner is going to be and once we get that locked down, then we can start having those [casting] conversations. The tricky part is the first two books, where the kids are on the younger end, around 11 or 12.”
Will there be any other Harry Potter TV projects?
“We’re free to do anything we want,” says Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav. “Some areas we need to do with J.K., other areas we have the full ability to go forward. This is a full deployment on Max of Harry Potter. We can still develop other properties.”
So it sounds like more tv projects could be a distinct possibility! Dobby spin-off anyone?
When will there be a trailer for the Harry Potter TV series?
Unfortunately there won't be a trailer for the first season available for a few years yet, but we'll be sure to let you know as soon as one apparates on the web.
