While several novels have been adapted into films, another alternative is to adapt them into television shows. By changing books into television shows, there is more room to develop the story and characters. In theHarry Potter films, several book characters either received drastically reduced roles or were ignored altogether.
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Those who had only watched the movies would never have met Peeves the Poltergeist, understood the extent of Harry and Dobby's relationship or learned more history between Severus Snape and Harry's parents. While the films did evade these storylines for various reasons, a television show would naturally give the series more room to develop. Yet, it may not have the desired effect. Here are 5 reasons whyHarry Potterhas a future as a TV series and 5 more why it should remain as a film franchise.
FLOURISH ON TV: More Room To Grow
Harry Potter films average about two and a half hours per movie. While this is a decent amount of time to cover the most direct of storylines, it leaves out several other parts of the story. Television shows, naturally, give more time to grow. If each episode were to be an hour, then two to three episodes could cover as much time as one film, opening up more space to feature other parts of the wizarding world.
From giving more background to Voldemort's reign in the past to allowing more character growth from the central trio and several side characters, a television show could provide fans a look into the world that the films could not.
LEAVE THE FILMS ALONE: The Large Budget
Each Harry Pottermovie understandably had a large budget for the sake of costumes, effects, make-up, set designs, and more.As technology evolved, thevisualsin each succeeding film became more intricateand complex. Case in point, fans could notice the difference between the Troll inHarry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the visual effects duringHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.
A television adaptation may not be given the same budget to re-create the wizarding world, which may have a more negative impact on the story.
FLOURISH ON TV: Incorporate More Novel Storylines
With only a few of the Harry Potterbooks out whenHarry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was released, the team behind the films wrote the story to be direct to Harry's journey. Anything that would not directly affect the endgame orwasdisposable was kept out of the adaptations.
Now with all seven novels (plus spin-offs) out in the world, all of the story's secrets are finally out and a television show could be molded to incorporate all the storylines that the movies could not fit or chose to leave out.
LEAVE THE FILMS ALONE: The Cast
To make a television series based on the novels, it would require re-casting all the characters. However, fans grew very fond of the novel's portrayals of their favorite characters. Several characters were so perfectly played by their respective actors that to recast them would inevitably lead to comparing the actors who played the parts.
A different set of actors may play the roles differently, especially if the characters were going to be written more similarly to their novel counterparts. While some fans may be on board, others may not be so easy to sway.
FLOURISH ON TV: It's Time For The Marauders
After theHarry Potter films came to an end, fans wanted to see a prequel about the Marauders' time at Hogwarts, including young Lily Evans and Severus Snape. What fans received, instead, wasHarry Potter and the Cursed Child(aplay about the next generation featuring Albus Severus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy) andFantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them(a prequel series starting in 1926).
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While both have gotten mixed responses from fans, the characters and timeline that fans really wantedto spend more time with was the Marauders. The films did notgive them enough flashbacks and references to them as the novels did, which led to readers wishing to see more. Perhaps a TV show could finally satisfy this need.
LEAVE THE FILMS ALONE: It's An Iconic Franchise
It is rare to see any franchise take off as spectacularly asHarry Potter did. From novels to movies, stage plays, and theme parks, the franchise led the way for other successful franchises, even inadvertently providing the blueprint for what would become the box office juggernaut known as theMarvel Cinematic Universe.
If the series were to be adapted into a television show, something so iconic would have plenty of hype and expectation surrounding it. If the television show could not live up to the quality of what came before, it would inevitably be considered a let-down.
FLOURISH ON TV: It Can Be More Similar To The Novels
A television show would naturally have more time overall to dig into more aspects of the novels. By doing so, the character arcs and personalities could more closely match the books rather than changing things about them. Those like Harry, Ron, and Ginny - who did not quite match their book counterparts - could get a more accurate interpretation in a television show that could be developed tobe as close to the source material as much as possible.
While the films did get some things right, eagle-eyed fans can swiftly spot a mistake, most notably seen when Dumbledore asks Harry if he put his name in the goblet of fire during the film's rendition of the confrontation.
LEAVE THE FILMS ALONE: The Series' Success
Sometimes, when a franchise is successful - especially to the extentHarry Potter was- fans like to leave the series where it is and move on. Case in point, the polarizing response to the belatedHarry Potter and the Cursed Childproved that fanswere perfectly fine withHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallowsas an ending to both the books and films.
Even in smaller successes, fansprefer to look back on their favorite series fondly rather than see it butchered by any new attempt to re-create themagic. Success should not automatically mean that a beloved franchise should go on forever.
FLOURISH ON TV: The Relationships Could Have More Build-Up
The relationship between Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger is the closest romance the films get to accurately adapting the relationships in the novels. While there are changes, the timeline andtheir dynamic follow the one shown in the books carefully. However, relationships like those between Harry and Ginny, Remus and Tonks, Bill and Fleur, and more get confusingly sidelined. While the novels clearly show the struggles between Remus and Tonks or the small steps leading to the wedding between Bill and Fleur, the films skip them all.
From only watching the movies, Bill and Fleur's wedding comes from out of nowhere, as they are never seen on-screen together previous to it. Meanwhile, Remus and Tonks offhandedly mention being married and later they have a baby.None of this makes sense in the films, given their lack of screen time.
LEAVE THE FILMS ALONE: People Are Tired Of Reboots
Perhaps one of the most significant reasons to not re-create the franchise into a television show is that people have grown endlessly tired of reboots, live-action remakes, sequels, and prequels. Several franchises continue to reboot their content and while few do succeed, several more fail due to the simple fact thataudiences areno longer interestedin a dated property.
Simply put, people want to see original content on their screens. While they would not be opposed to more on-screen adaptions of their favorite books or comics, they do not want to see the same wizarding franchise constantly repeat itself for no reason.
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