Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is getting a brand new version before HBO’s reboot begins.
HBO is preparing to retell J.K. Rowling’s seven-book series for television, beginning with Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone this Christmas. Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout, and Arabella Stanton will replace Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson as Harry, Ron, and Hermione.
The new series promises considerably more room for Rowling’s original stories than the eight Warner Bros. movies. Francesca Gardiner serves as showrunner, while Succession director Mark Mylod will direct multiple episodes. Peter Serafinowicz will also play Peeves, who never appeared in the films.
But television is not the only part of Harry Potter getting a new interpretation in 2026.
Before HBO’s reboot begins, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is being redone for a new illustrated edition — complete with a different artist and an entirely new visual take on Harry’s sixth year at Hogwarts.
Half-Blood Prince Changes Hands
Bloomsbury will publish the new illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince on October 6, 2026. It is the sixth installment in the publisher’s illustrated Harry Potter collection and will also be released simultaneously by Scholastic in the United States.
JUST WOW!
Bloomsbury has revealed new illustrations from the HARRY POTTER and the Half-Blood Prince Illustrated Edition
Publishing on 6 october 2026
More details: https://t.co/r8z8r9VbcD pic.twitter.com/lh3WN8HhlF
— Wizarding World Direct (@WW_Direct) September 18, 2026
The story itself is not being rewritten. The 432-page book contains Rowling’s original unabridged text, but pairs it with a new collection of full-color artwork depicting characters, locations, and major moments from the novel.
There is also a major change behind the artwork.
Jim Kay illustrated the first five books in the collection, beginning with Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 2015. For the final two novels, Bloomsbury has handed the series to British illustrator Levi Pinfold.
Pinfold previously worked on the Hogwarts House editions and The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac. He will illustrate both Half-Blood Prince and the eventual illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
His new cover places Harry and Dumbledore inside the cave from the book’s final act, surrounded by fire as Inferi approach. Other revealed artwork includes the Pensieve, Hogwarts, Privet Drive, Katie Bell and the cursed necklace, and the Astronomy Tower.
The illustrated collection has sold nearly one million copies and been translated into 38 languages worldwide. A more elaborate Deluxe Illustrated Slipcase Edition of Half-Blood Prince will follow on November 3.
HBO May Eventually Retell the Story Again
Published in 2005, Half-Blood Prince follows Harry’s sixth year at Hogwarts as Voldemort’s return sends the wizarding world into turmoil.
Dumbledore begins using the Pensieve to show Harry memories from Tom Riddle’s past, eventually revealing the existence of Horcruxes. Elsewhere, Draco Malfoy is secretly tasked with killing Dumbledore, while Harry discovers a mysterious Potions textbook filled with notes from the self-proclaimed Half-Blood Prince.
When Warner Bros. adapted the novel for film in 2009, large sections of that story were condensed or removed.
Much of Voldemort’s history was cut, including memories exploring his mother, Merope Gaunt, and the wider Gaunt family. The film also removed Dumbledore’s funeral and the battle at Hogwarts that follows the Death Eaters’ arrival through the Vanishing Cabinet.
Instead, the movie introduced an attack on the Burrow that does not occur in the novel and devoted more time to the romantic relationships between Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Lavender Brown.
That leaves HBO with plenty of material to approach differently if its adaptation eventually reaches Half-Blood Prince.
The television format is already restoring elements absent from the films. Peeves is finally making his onscreen debut, while HBO has repeatedly described the project as a new adaptation of Rowling’s books rather than a remake of the Warner Bros. movies (although the author's involvement in the reboot remains extremely divisive).
Publishing is changing alongside the screen franchise.
A new TV tie-in paperback of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone will arrive on November 3, using imagery from HBO’s series. For American readers, Scholastic is also replacing the familiar Sorcerer’s Stone title with Philosopher’s Stone.
That means Harry Potter fans will see several familiar stories receive new presentations before HBO even reaches Hogwarts.
Are you excited for HBO's new take on Harry Potter and the wizarding world?
