Earlier this year, HBO Max was rebranded as "Max," and Warner Bros. wasted no time in announcing that Harry Potter will be rebooted for the streamer as a TV series. Max now has a decade-long plan for the Wizarding World franchise, and new actors will take over these iconic roles for what's been described as an "authentic" retelling of J.K. Rowling's novels.
It goes without saying that the movies remain beloved, but it's been 22 years since The Philosopher's Stone/The Sorcerer's Stone was released in theaters and 12 years since The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 wrapped up the story.
With that in mind, we can't deny that now feels like the right time for a reboot, especially after the Fantastic Beasts movies struggled to attract the same huge audience as the main Harry Potter series.
Daniel Radcliffe has said on numerous occasions that he won't be making a cameo appearance and now filmmaker David Yates - who helmed four Harry Potter movies and the Fantastic Beasts trilogy - has made it clear Max will reboot the Boy Wizard without his input.
"Do you know what? Honestly, I could not, in any conceivable way, get involved," he tells ComicBook.com. "It's simple: I spent a long time at that school, in those corridors and in those classrooms, and it was an exquisite experience and one I will always treasure. But to go back and do another year or two, for me, I feel I've left it."
"Being in the back of a van with [producer] Lawrence [Grey] in Atlanta of Savannah, hoofing it to try and make a drama, to me, at the moment, is more compelling than going through the hallowed gates of Hogwarts."
"I wish that show so well, it's gonna be amazing to see them re-explore all it can be for the next generation," Yates continued. "I think it'll be a challenge for everyone involved, but it's a very exciting enterprise and I wish it well. It was an amazing experience for me, and I know the other filmmakers who were involved, and it will be for the next generation of filmmakers."
Yates also recently confirmed that, as far as he's aware, Warner Bros. is now done with Fantastic Beasts so his time in the Wizarding World appears well and truly over.
Harry Potter franchise producer David Heyman has said a writer still hasn't been tapped to write the TV series but confirmed the plan is to take a much deeper dive into the books. Presumably, Rowling will take a back seat given the continued controversies surrounding the author.