HBO‘s upcoming Harry Potter series is opening the registrar’s office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry early by officially greenlighting a second season of the fantasy series. Season 2 of Harry Potter will begin filming this fall, ahead of the Christmas premiere of Season 1, titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
In addition to getting the jump on another season of the anticipated series, Jon Brown (Succession), who is a writer on the first season, has been bumped up to co-showrunner for Season 2 alongside Season 1 showrunner Francesca Gardiner. Today’s Season 2 renewal comes as no surprise, as we fully expect Harry Potter to reimagine the entire Potter saga in an episodic format. Production on the first season is still underway, with filming set to wrap in a few weeks.
“The plan is to still try and get it — I don’t know if it’s going to be like stop shooting Season 1 on Friday and start Season 2 on Monday,” Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content, said about the projected timeline in November. “There’ll be a break in there, but we’re going to do whatever we can to not have a huge gap.”
Obviously, the kids who play Harry (Dominic McLaughlin), Hermione (Arabella Stanton), and Ron (Alastair Stout) are growing up fast. So, HBO would want to put the pedal to the metal to film as much as possible in a timely fashion. “For the kids, obviously, but also for viewers, trying to not have massive gaps [between seasons],” Bloys added. “It is a big show, lots of special effects, obviously, massive operation, but we’re going to do what we can.”
Meanwhile, Gardiner commented on Brown’s graduation to co-showrunner, saying, “As we have laid out our plans for the overlapping production schedules to finish season one by Christmas and to return to production for season two this Autumn, it has become clear that bringing on a co-showrunner is the key to maintaining our momentum. I’ve loved working with Jon from the very first day we met on Succession through to these recent times together on Harry Potter. Not only do I have huge admiration for his writing, but he’s also a brilliant collaborator and a lovely person. We are lucky to have him.”
“I’m incredibly excited to be collaborating with Francesca as co-showrunner,” Brown said. “It has been a joy to write on Philosopher’s Stone and I’d like to thank Francesca and HBO for putting their faith in me to continue this remarkable journey. Seems you’re never too old to get your invitation to Hogwarts.”
The cast of the show includes John Lithgow as Dumbledore, Nick Frost as Hagrid, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell, Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch, Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy, Johnny Flynn as his father Lucius Malfoy, Bel Powley and Daniel Rigby as Petunia Dursley and Vernon Dursley, Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley, Elijah Oshin as Dean Thomas, Finn Stephens as Vincent Crabbe, William Nash as Gregory Goyle, Warwick Davis as Filius Flitwick, Sirine Saba as Pomona Sprout. As Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, we have Bertie Carvel.
As Hogwarts students Seamus Finnigan, Parvati Patil, and Lavender Brown, the show has cast newcomers Leo Earley, Alessia Leoni, and Sienna Moosah. There’s Rory Wilmot as Neville Longbottom, Amos Kitson as Dudley Dursley, Louise Brealey as Madam Rolanda Hooch, and Anton Lesser as Garrick Ollivander, plus twins Tristan and Gabriel Harland will play Fred and George Weasley, with Ruari Spooner as Percy Weasley and Gracie Cochrane as Ginny Weasley.
Each season of the Harry Potter TV series is said to cover one of J.K. Rowling’s novels, for a total of seven seasons.
Last year, HBO released a statement saying, “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.” The first season will be filmed over 10 months and will consist of either 6 or 8 episodes.
The synopsis for the show says, “The franchise follows the life of a young wizard, the titular Harry Potter, whose parents died under mysterious circumstances when he was very young. He was forced to live a life of misery and servitude to his aunt and uncle and their awful son before he was freed from his gilded cage when Hagrid extended an invitation that changed his life forever. The adventure begins as Harry and his magical friends Ron and Hermoine become students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, who come of age in a time of extreme turmoil where the threat of war looms close.”
The logline for the first season, titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: There is nothing special about Harry Potter – at least that’s what his Aunt Petunia always says. On his 11th birthday, a letter of admittance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry opens up a hidden world for Harry: one of fun, friendship, and magic. But with this new adventure comes great risk as Harry must face a dangerous enemy from his past.
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