A New ‘Harry Potter’ Series is Reportedly in the Works!

In 1997, unknown English author J.K. Rowling published her first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (or Sorcerer’s Stone for those in the U.S.). The story of an orphaned boy wizard and his journey into the world of magic took the world by storm. Four years after her first book in the Harry Potter series was published, Warner Bros. released the first film. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone starred Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Rupert Grint as Harry’s best friend, Ron Weasley, and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger. The film shot the young actors into superstardom.

For over a decade, fans lined up at midnight to be some of the first people to get their hands on Rowling’s newest novel in the series. Each film became more successful and popular than the last. In the end, Rowling published seven books that were turned into eight movies — Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The final film was turned into two epic movies, as filmmakers wanted to be as true to the book as possible.

It’s been more than ten years since fans last saw the boy wizard, but their love for him has only grown. Universal Studios has opened The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at its Universal Orlando Resort, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Studios Japan. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was a play written in 2016 that follows Harry 19 years after the events of the Deathly Hallows.

But now, it looks like we will be visiting the boy wizard and his magical world once again. According to a report from Bloomberg, Warner Bros. is close to inking a deal for a series that would air on HBO. Per Bloomberg, the plan is to further explore Rowling’s novels, diving deeper than ever before. Each season of the new series would focus on one of the books in the series.

Here’s more on the new series that audiences could soon be enjoying:

Each season of the series will be based on one of JK Rowling’s seven books, said the people, who asked not to be identified since the deal hasn’t been announced, suggesting years of fresh fare from the popular stories. 

The company is hoping the series can be one cornerstore of a new streaming strategy that will be announced next week by HBO’s parent, Warner Bros. That company’s chief executive officer, David Zaslav, and HBO chief Casey Bloys have worked to convince Rowling to produce a new series, but the deal hasn’t been completed.

Sources who spoke to Bloomberg said that Rowling will be a part of the series, but only to make sure that the series remains true to the source material. Rowling will not be part of the day-to-day production or be one of the show’s creators.

In the years since Harry Potter, Rowling has made many statements that have been deemed transphobic. Instead of apologizing, Rowling has doubled down on her comments. Many of the stars of Harry Potter have criticized Rowling’s comments — especially Emma Watson.

At this time, the deal has not been finalized, but Disney Fanatic will keep readers updated when it becomes official!