The Harry Potter franchise might be headed to the small screen.

Two recent reports have claimed that a Harry Potter live-action TV series is in early development - and it's meant for HBO Max.

It should be no surprise that HBO and Warner Bros would want to continue developing the Harry Potter franchise, especially for its streaming service, given they've just recently launched HBO Max and content is king during this age of the streaming wars. After all, Disney certainly isn't wasting any time drumming up more shows within the Marvel and Star Wars worlds in order to beef up its Disney+ streaming service

Here then is everything we've heard so far about the new Harry Potter show and its potential debut on HBO Max. 

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Harry Potter TV show: Rumours

The Hollywood Reporter first reported in January 2020 that executives at WarnerMedia have held a series of meetings with writers to discuss broad ideas about bringing the Harry Potter franchise to television. The meetings were described as "early-stage exploratory" conversations.

Executives at both HBO and Warner Bros are reportedly attempting to find a writer and pitch for a Harry Potter live-action TV series for HBO Max. However, in a statement, HBO Max and Warner Bros said there are "no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform".

Variety has also reported that a Harry Potter series is in very early development at HBO Max. It claimed that rumours about a show set within the wizarding world have existed for some time, but it's still unclear what the focus of the show would be or where it would fit into the Potter timeline.

The Harry Potter books are among the most popular of all time, having sold over 500 million copies worldwide. They were adapted into eight feature-length films, which have grossed nearly $8 billion worldwide, plus there are two Fantastic Beasts spinoff films, with a third due out in 2022.

It's worth noting that the franchise's writer and creator, JK Rowling, has received a heaping amount of backlash in the last couple of years for her tweets as well as an essay on transgender individuals. It's therefore unknown if Rowling will be attached to the TV show in any way. But Rowling, along with Warner Bros, does control the rights to the franchise, which remains beloved by fans worldwide despite Rowling's recent remarks. 

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Harry Potter TV show: Cast and crew

No writers or directors are attached yet, let alone talent, as the show is still is reportedly still in the early stages and no deals have been made.

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Harry Potter TV show: Release date

The Harry Potter TV show has no known release date at this time. But keep in mind the entire franchise has complicated rights issues that could delay the TV show from launching for a few years, considering reports claim Warner Bros wants to reserve the series for its HBO Max streaming service. 

NBCUniversal in 2016 landed a seven-year distribution rights deal with Warner Bros that included US broadcast, cable, and streaming rights to the Harry Potter franchise. Because that deal ends in April 2025, Warners execs had to ink a separate deal to stream the feature films briefly on HBO Max. The films are set to return to NBCUniversal, for its Peacock streaming service, at a date to be determined later this year.

So, it may have to wait until 2025 to even debut on HBO Max, unless Warner Bros and HBO have been able to work out a different deal that allows it to develop a new series that it can distribute without NBCUniversal. Even then, it does sound like the TV show is still a long way from coming to fruition. 

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Harry Potter TV show: Trailers

There are no trailers or teasers available. HBO and Warner Bros haven't even confirmed the TV show is in the works yet.

Want to know more?

Check out our guide on how to watch every Harry Potter movie in order.