In the days following the Warner Bros. announcement. Discovery about plans for the rebranded Max streaming service Much of the back-and-forth talk has been about one particular ad — the new “Harry Potter” TV series.
The online reaction on social media has been raucous and divisive and has drawn in some passionate arguments not only over the apparent controversy surrounding author JK Rowling’s personal views but also about the series itself.
Watchman I’ve spoken with several Harry Potter fans about their hopes for the series, and the biggest feeling seems to be one of hopes that the show will include “everything from the books that were left out of the movies,” as one put it. Others want to get more fan involvement and reactions in the story.
On Twitter, the reaction was more negative. Few of them seem to call it superfluous; Other criticisms were about the ad title card using an old movie font, John Williams theme, and Hogwarts design.
Some of the more telling remarks about the franchise’s future came in a post-conference Q&A. WBD President David Zaslav revealed that the studio is “free to do anything we want” with the “Harry Potter” property. He says Hey ho:
Some areas we need to do with JK [Rowling], In other areas we have the full potential to move forward. This is a complete post on Max from “Harry Potter”. We can still develop other properties.”
That may indicate that more “Harry Potter” projects could be in the works at some point in the future as well, projects without Rowling’s involvement. Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max Content, responded to a question from a reporter at Q&A about Rowling’s involvement in the just-announced series and said (via: buzzfeed):
“I don’t think this is the forum [to discuss that]. This is an online conversation, it’s obviously very nuanced and complex and it’s not something we’re going to get into. Our priority is what appears on the screen. Obviously, the Harry Potter story is incredibly positive and positive about love and self-acceptance. This is our priority – what appears on the screen.
Even with all the fan backlash, Warner Bros. Discovery stands by its decision to work with Rowling and the company is currently said to still be looking for a model according to Fox 26. After that, things would start getting ready for writing and then production.
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