The Harry Potter film universe unites millions of fans all over the world. Over time, interest in it does not fade, especially since the universe has been replenished with new films that no longer have a direct relationship to the Boy Who Lived himself, but immerse the viewer in the same enchanting atmosphere of the world of magic and wizardry. So for all fans of the series, we have collected the most interesting facts about the Harry Potter films.
"Harry Potter" is not just the most popular series of books and films, which brought its creator a huge fortune. J. K. Rowling was able to create a truly magical world, which readers were transported to, and the filmmakers and the cast tried to transfer the story of the boy who came to the big screen as closely as possible.
In her interviews, the writer revealed small secrets that concerned the history of the creation or possible development of the plot. The actors shared interesting and funny incidents that happened during the filming.
1. Draco Malfoy: The Sweet-Toothed Thief
Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy, stole sweets and snacks from the buffet during filming, hiding his loot in the pockets of his robe. When this was discovered, his pockets were sewn shut.
The actor himself confirmed this fact at a fan convention in 2014:
"There are rumors that my pockets were sewn shut during the filming of the third movie because I was secretly eating and drinking. I would like to set the record straight - this is absolutely true."
2. Albus Dumbledore threatened Chris Columbus
Richard Harris, who played Albus Dumbledore in the first two Potter films, once told director Christopher Columbus that he would kill him if another actor was cast as his character.
"He actually threatened to kill me if I cast another actor in his place. I can't even repeat what he said to me," Chris Columbus said in an interview shortly before Harris's death.
3. The Hogwarts Express was attacked by vandals
The train, known to audiences as the Hogwarts Express, was vandalised between filming of Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban.
The same train that took young wizards to Hogwarts
One night, vandals spray-painted several carriages of the train with various paints, causing damage amounting to several thousand pounds.
4. Chris Columbus's successful improvisation
Draco Malfoy's line "I didn't know you could read" was improvised by director Chris Columbus. Tom Felton later named this episode among his favorite moments in the entire series.
This improvisation turned into a meme
There is a common misconception that this phrase was a forced improvisation by Tom, who at that moment forgot the original text. In reality, the changes to the text were indeed made spontaneously, but not by the actor, but by the director himself.
5. The door to the Chamber of Secrets really exists
The door to the Chamber of Secrets from the second part of the Potter series, along with the amazing castle made of snakes, is not a computer effect: it was built in life size and all its mechanical elements still work.
The structure created for filming is located in London's Warner Bros. Studio Tour. However, individual elements of this mechanism are quite delicate, so seeing it in action with your own eyes is a great success.
6. Harry's wand changed
Producers changed Harry Potter's wand between the second and third films in the series.
The most observant viewers noticed that the wand designs of the key characters “evolved from film to film.” Indeed, before filming began on Prisoner of Azkaban, director Alfonso Cuarón gave the actors the opportunity to choose new wands of their own choosing. Daniel Radcliffe’s choice fell on the now-famous “hook” wand, which artistic director Hattie Storey described as “even more mysterious and magical.”
7. Around 80 copies of Daniel Radcliffe's wand were made.
During the filming of the Potter films, Daniel Radcliffe used at least 80 wands because he continued to carry them with him at all times.
On average, 6 sticks were made for all the main characters, but for Daniel Radcliffe, about 80 had to be made because he, for example, used them as drumsticks, tapping out rhythms on different surfaces. In fairness, the actor eventually admitted that he was very ashamed of his irresponsible attitude to the props.
8. J.K. Rowling could have played Lily
Producers offered J.K. Rowling to play Harry Potter's mother in flashbacks of The Philosopher's Stone, but the writer rejected the offer.
Lily and James Potter
She turned down the role because she was "really not cut out for being an actress, even for roles where you just have to stand there and freak out."
9. Fun fact: the Dementors were filmed underwater
In the process of creating the Dementors, special puppets were used, and filming took place underwater to create the unique effect of their levitation, which puts viewers into a stupor.
Dementors are one of the most terrifying creatures in the Harry Potter world.
Initially, the filmmakers wanted to film the Dementors entirely in this manner, without the use of computer graphics, but during the process it became clear that it was impossible to control the movement of the puppets underwater. The underwater footage was later used as a basis for the digital models of the Dementors that eventually appeared on screen.
10. Emma Watson buried a hamster in a coffin
During the filming of "The Philosopher's Stone," Emma Watson had a Djungarian hamster. However, the lifespan of these creatures is very short and the hamster died. The actress was very upset, and to console her, the props people built a small coffin to bury the animal.
The coffin was made of mahogany and lined with velvet. It was probably the most solemn hamster funeral ever.
11. Voldemort wore stockings with garters
Actor Ralph Fiennes, who plays Lord Voldemort, originally wore tights under his stage robes, but the gusset made movement difficult, so the actor ended up using stockings and garters.
Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort
“When our stuntmen looked too masculine, I teased them with my seductive hips,” the actor said at a meeting with fans in 2011.
12. In the first film, Harry does not use spells.
In the first Potter film, the main character uses exclusively "wandless" magic.
Harry Potter in his first year at Hogwarts
Harry makes glass disappear at the zoo, communicates with snakes, and of course overcomes all the difficulties that befall him, but throughout the film he does without spells, although his friends use them.
13. Moaning Myrtle is almost 40 years old.
The actress who played the ghost of Moaning Myrtle, Shirley Henderson, was 36 years old during the filming of Chamber of Secrets.
Shirley Henderson as Moaning Myrtle
"She's a multifaceted character, with lots of mood swings and intense emotions," Shirley Henderson said in an interview. "That's probably why the producers cast an adult actor rather than a real teenager."
14. Voldemort "in his youth" and "in the present" are really related
Hero Fiennes Tiffin, the actor who played the young Voldemort in the film Half-Blood Prince, turned out to be the nephew of Ralph Fiennes, who played Voldemort after his return.
According to David Yates, it wasn't the family connections that were the deciding factor. "It was an advantage that he had a physical resemblance to Rafe, but Hiro got the part because of his amazing ability to transform into a young Tom Riddle on screen," Yates told USA Today in 2008.
15. Daniel Radcliffe was allergic to his character's glasses.
During filming, Daniel Radcliffe developed an allergic reaction to the green contact lenses and original glasses used to create the Harry Potter look.
"It took about a week for the ugly spots to appear under my eyes," the actor said in a joint interview with J.K. Rowling. "We eventually realized I was allergic to the Harry Potter glasses. By then I had two rings of whiteheads around my eyes."
16. Zhou Chang cried to Coldplay
Katie Leung, who played the sorceress Cho Chang, listened to Coldplay songs in her dressing room between scenes that required her to cry.
17. Dolores Umbridge's costumes reflect her hysteria
Dolores Umbridge's wardrobe, which appeared in "The Order of the Phoenix", is initially pinkish-cream in color, but as the plot develops, it becomes brighter and darker, reflecting the development of the character herself, her gradual immersion into the dark abyss of passions.
“I started with a light pink, and then as the film progresses, the pinks get hotter and hotter and brighter because the character herself becomes more and more obsessive and hysterical,” costume designer Yani Temime shared in an interview.
18. Professor McGonagall suffered from cancer.
Actress Maggie Smith, the permanent performer of the role of Professor McGonagall, was undergoing treatment for breast cancer during the filming of "The Half-Blood Prince".
Maggie Smith as Professor McGonagall
Although the actress underwent chemotherapy during filming, she refused to let her stop playing Professor McGonagall: "I was bald, but it was comfortable to wear a wig. I looked like a boiled egg," the actress told the Times. "The last few years have been a real challenge, although now I am starting to feel like a person. My strength is returning, but I have to pick myself up piece by piece."
19. Emma Watson advised Helena Bonham Carter
In preparation for the scene where Miss Granger takes on the guise of Bellatrix to infiltrate Gringotts, Emma Watson gave Helena Bonham-Carter a checklist of tips on how to play her character.
Emma Watson and Helena Bonham Carter in their usual looks
“It’s a really fun way to work, to look at myself from a different perspective, to become aware of my own physicality that I hadn’t thought about before,” Emma said, helping Helena prepare for the episode. “Watching Helena try to play my character was really weird. And she’s weird in a good way.”
20. The first part of the "Seven Potters" scene was filmed in 95 takes.
It took 95 takes to film the hallway scene, which contains seven Potters at once.
Daniel Radcliffe and his six "doubles" from the first part of "Deathly Hallows"
Daniel Radcliffe spent about 12 takes to portray the plasticity and behavioral features of all the characters who "reincarnated" into Harry Potter. The easiest thing for the actor was to portray Hermione's mannerisms - he did it in one take.
21. Emma Watson kicked Rupert Grint
Emma Watson kicked Rupert Grint while filming the vision scene in the crystal ward where "Harry" and "Hermione" kiss. The actor got it because he couldn't stop laughing.
"When they were filming that kiss, I just couldn't calm down, it looked too funny. Then Emma sent me in a certain direction and even kicked me because I kept laughing. It looked really funny, I ended up just leaving the set," Rupert shared in an interview.
22. "Souvenirs" from the filming
When the films wrapped, Daniel Radcliffe took Harry Potter's glasses from the first and last films, Rupert Grint took the Illuminator and the number 4 from Privet Drive, and Emma Watson took her character's wand, cloak and Time-Turner from Prisoner of Azkaban.
Harry and Hermione in the process of using the Time-Turner
Rupert also said that he tried to take the Golden Egg from the Goblet of Fire movie props without permission, but was spotted and forced to return the "souvenir" to its place.
It was a great disappointment for Potter fans that all the films featuring their favorite characters had already been released. The only consolation is the prequel films about Newt Scamander, young Albrus Dumbledore and other heroes of the magical world created by the writer J.K. Rowling.
23. Daniel Radcliffe could have been Draco Malfoy
It's hard to imagine anyone playing the arrogant Malfoy now, except Tom Felton. But it turns out that Daniel Radcliffe, beloved by almost everyone, wanted to play him. The boy wanted to please so much that he did a somersault in the air.
But, fortunately, young Daniel was not suitable for the role of Draco. Therefore, the boy began to audition for the role of Harry Potter. By the way, at the time of the auditions, the future star had not read a single book about the boy wizard. As a result, Daniel Readcliffe began to audition for the role of Harry Potter and played the famous wizard perfectly.
24. A gorgeous view of Hogwarts Castle - model
All the viewers were taken aback by the close-up of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. But, alas, it turned out that it was not a real castle at all, but a model created by talented artists. The scale of Hogwarts was 1:24, and it occupied an entire room.
But despite the fact that this architectural beauty is only a model, it required a lot of work and talent from the artists. Real stones and flowers were used to create it. During filming, other parts of the castle were added to the main model: a quidditch field and others.
25. Hermione's Romantic Twists and Turns
Despite the fact that Hermione is a very proper sorceress, for whom the most important thing in life is studying, nevertheless, she is the main romantic heroine of the series. All fans know that Rowling wrote the character of the young sorceress from herself, which can be seen in the Patronus. Granger's Patronus is an otter, and they are the writer's favorite animals.
In one of her interviews, Joan Rowling said that Draco, who hated and despised Hermione, was actually in love with her. And all his behavior was just a way to hide his feelings, because he was afraid that they would be exposed. The writer also said that the most expected development would be the appearance of a Harry-Hermione couple. But Ron Weasley suits the heroine better - it was he who, due to his character, was able to make her happy.
26. Only British people could play in the film about the young wizard
One of the main conditions that Joanna set for the film was that all the actors had to be of British origin. Because of this condition, some famous actors could not act in this story, although the director liked their acting. This requirement was put forward by the writer because, in her opinion, only British actors would be able to act believably in the story of Harry Potter. But in the fourth part, an exception was made because it did not contradict the plot of the book.
27. Essay on the main characters
Director Cuarón decided to test how well the leading actors understood their characters. And the young people pleasantly surprised him. Emma Watson wrote a 16-page essay in the best traditions of her heroine, Daniel Radcliffe handed in his work on a small sheet of paper, and Rupert Grint didn’t write an essay at all.
28. The meaning of the name Vol-de-Mort
The name of the most evil wizard is of French origin. And its literal translation means "escape from death." After all, it was death that Tom Riddle feared most of all and sought to gain immortality in every possible way. By the way, the letter "t" in his name is not pronounced, but Rowling is sure that she is the only one who pronounces his name that way.
29. Voldemort may have had bright red eyes.
Voldemort was originally planned to have bright red eyes. But actor Ralph Fiennes was able to convince the directors to abandon this idea. Because he was confident that he could play such a Dark Lord that would give the audience goosebumps, without the help of colored lenses and a lot of computer special effects.
30. What was the most challenging part of filming for Emma Watson?
As it turned out, the hardest thing for the actress who played Hermione was getting angry. During acting lessons, Emma had to pretend to be angry, but instead she started crying. The actress herself explained this by saying that she was not used to expressing her negative emotions.
31. Interesting facts about magic wands
It is no coincidence that the Dark Lord's wand is made of yew wood. Yew is considered a tree of great power and represents death and rebirth: this is the kind of immortality that Voldemort wanted to achieve.
But the wands that were used during filming are unique. There were no absolutely identical wands, not even the Weasley twins had. Daniel Radcliffe had 70 wands in his hands during filming.
32. How did they try to change the actors' appearance?
In order to fully resemble their characters, the actors were asked to make minor changes to their appearance. Radcliffe wore green lenses, and Emma Watson wore “false” teeth, because in the book, Hermione’s front teeth looked a bit like a hare’s. But this attempt failed: Daniel had a strong allergic reaction to the lenses, and Emma’s diction was impaired and she couldn’t pronounce words correctly.
33. Actresses who played Harry the Owl
Owls became popular thanks to this film. After all, one of the bright "actresses" was a snow-white polar owl. Three birds were used for Harry Potter's owl: Ook, Gizmo and Sprout. In order for them to be prepared for filming, each of them was trained for 3 months. By the way, later their owner was held accountable for poor treatment of the birds: they were kept in unsanitary conditions and lacked food and water. And after the release of the film, many owl owners released their pets into the wild, because these birds need different conditions.
34. Education at Hogwarts is free
The writer made this statement when fans calculated the possible cost of studying at the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which turned out to be quite a large sum. But all expenses for the education of young wizards and witches are covered by the Ministry of Magic.
35. Interesting Cases with the Sorting Hat
Usually, as soon as the hat touches a student's head, it immediately shouts out the house. But it thought a little longer when it was the turn of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom. But even this is not a record for the hat's thinking. In its entire history, there have only been two cases when the Sorting Hat thought for more than 5 minutes. This concerned Minerva McGonagall and Peter Pettigrew. In the case of the future professor, it chose between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, and Pettigrew - Slytherin or Gryffindor.
36. The Secret Room
For the second part, Hogwarts Castle was “rebuilt”. Interesting facts about Harry Potter can be found here. In some scenes, a high-quality large-scale model was used. For this, 40 specialists were used, who worked for 7 months. The model was changed in the following parts, depending on the plot twists. For example, in the third film, a prison tower was added. Natural filming was carried out against the backdrop of Enik Castle. Next to it is a site where a quidditch field was recreated. Now this place is actively visited by tourists, so many decorations are not specially removed. In the second film, the ghost of Moaning Myrtle appeared - a Hogwarts student who tragically died several decades ago. The spirit retained the appearance and voice of a 13-year-old. However, Shirley Henderson, who played this role, was an order of magnitude older - she was 37.
37. "Prisoner of Azkaban"
The film was a turning point in the sense that the director of the first two parts left the project. Alfonso Cuaron was appointed instead. He was known for his unconventional approach to the filming process. For example, the director instructed the three main actors to write an autobiographical essay on behalf of Harry, Ron and Hermione. Radcliffe and Watson completed their task, while Rupert Grint refused. When the director asked the actor why he would not write an essay, he replied that Ron would never do it in his place. For this, he received praise from Cuaron, who said that Grint had a good sense of his character's personality. Unfortunately, on the eve of filming, Richard Harris, who played Dumbledore, passed away prematurely. His place was taken by another Irish actor, Michael Gambon. There was a great demand for this role due to the success of the series. One of the candidates was Christopher Lee. Ian McKellen was also offered the role, but he refused, arguing that he had already played the wizard Gandalf in the film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings. Interestingly, Christopher Lee also played the wizard Saruman there. Another failed castling was the invitation to take the place of director Guillermo Del Toro. The famous director decided to take on another project - Hellboy. In the end, Alfonso Cuaron was invited. Other interesting facts about the Harry Potter actors are that it was in The Prisoner that several important new characters appeared. For example, the wizard's godfather Sirius Black. He was played by the famous Gary Oldman, known for such films of the 90s as Dracula and Leon. But this is not the end of the interesting facts about the film Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Remus Lupin, a professor of defense against the Dark Arts, also appeared here. The role was entrusted to David Thewlis. The funniest thing is that he had already tried to get into the "Potteriada" during the casting for the first film. Then he tried out for the place of Professor Quirrell, but the place went to Ian Hart. And now, several years later, Thewlis finally got into the project, and got the role of a more important and long-lived character. The village of Hogsmeade appears in the film, where the students go for the weekend. It was filmed in the town of Goathland, in North Yorkshire.
38. Goblet of Fire
Many interesting facts about Harry Potter from the book were not included in the film. This was due to the large volume of the novel. For example, the house elves from Hogwarts were not included in the film. However, the director decided to make a small scene with them. Thus, Harry Potter continued. Interesting facts about the actors can be supplemented by the fact that Joan Rowling herself flashed in the film adaptation. She played a fan who sat behind Hagrand during the first task.
39. Order of the Phoenix
The filming process was disrupted for about a month because Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson had to take final exams at their schools. Warner Brothers had to rewrite the schedule, which cost the studio about $5 million. The fate of the new odious character Dolores Umbridge attracted special attention from all viewers. Even the legendary Stephen King responded to it, calling the teacher "the greatest fictional villain, comparable to Hannibal Lecter." Ian McKellen also received a cameo role, appearing as a shadow in the False Moody's Enemy Manifestor.
40. Half-Blood Prince
As in previous films, the premises of Oxford University, the oldest in England, were used to film a large number of scenes inside Hogwarts. For example, the very hall where the selection of students took place was found in one of its colleges. Scenes with stairs were filmed there, and about two hundred “magic” pictures were specially drawn, which were then brought to life with the help of visual effects. Some of them depict members of the direct crew who filmed the movie. In general, Hogwarts locations are scattered throughout Great Britain. For example, Hagrid’s hut was filmed in Scotland, in an isolated valley with amazing nature. A tall double was found for the giant himself. But the Forbidden Forest (where Snape runs away in the finale) is located very close to London (32 kilometers away).
41. "The Deathly Hallows": Part One
The last book about Harry Potter was filmed in two parts. This decision was made in order not to cut out important scenes and plot lines. As a result, we got two full-length films with a very intense development of events. Interesting facts about the film "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" meet the viewer already in the Ministry of Magic, where the three friends go incognito in order to steal the Horcrux locket. Russian viewers may recognize the Moscow metro in these halls, whose decoration served as inspiration for the specialists responsible for visual effects and filming pavilions. In particular, the chief production designer later admitted that when creating the scenery, he was guided by the architecture of the Stalin era. It was just during these years that the first metro lines were launched, they were made in a pompous style. The film also contains other references to Soviet culture, for example, propaganda posters on the fight against mudbloods resemble propaganda against the bourgeoisie.
42. "The Deathly Hallows": Part Two
In the scene where Harry finds the Ravenclaw diadem, he runs into Malfoy and his friends. According to the book, one of them, Vincent Crabbe, died from a carelessly cast hellfire spell. However, in the film, it happened to another Slytherin student, Gregory Goyle. Crabbe was not in this scene at all. The reason for this was the arrest of Jamie Waylett, the actor who played Vincent in all previous parts. He was jailed for illegally growing cannabis. The team filming the movie decided not to look for a replacement for Crabbe, but to “kill” another character similar to him. The last film was a success in cinemas around the world. To date, it is the seventh film on the list of the highest-grossing premieres. The eighth film was the only one in the “Potteria” to collect more than a billion dollars. The scale can be confirmed by other facts. For example, more than 400 extras were used during the filming of the final battle. These were scenes with Death Eaters and besieged Hogwarts students. Interesting facts about Harry Potter in this part also concern the main actors. For example, the actor who played Draco Malfoy made sure that in the epilogue the role of his wife went to his own real girlfriend. As you know, the final scene shows the future 19 years later. What other interesting facts are there about the heroes of Harry Potter? For example, the effect of "aging" was achieved with makeup and visual effects. And much more - it is impossible to list everything.
Of course, these are not all the interesting facts about Harry Potter. There is much more to write about the families of the students, their future lives, about the professors and the magical world. And there were many interesting things during the filming, because they lasted a long time. But all these facts appeared thanks to the fact that Joan Rowling was able to create an amazing story about Harry Potter and immerse the reader in the world of magic.
Interesting facts about Harry Potter are primarily related to the huge success of this franchise. This is especially noticeable in Britain, where J.K. Rowling herself is from. For example, after the first film, it was noted that the British began to buy a huge number of owls in order to look after them as pets. According to the plot, Harry has Hedwig, who delivers mail and lives in a special room in Hogwarts. But real owls are completely unsuited to life in human domestic conditions, so many birds bought on the wave of "Pottermania" eventually gave in or were released into the wild. Interesting facts from the filming of Harry Potter were supplemented by the same release. Warner Brothers, having released the film in the USA, gave it an unoriginal title. This was due to the first edition of the book in the West under the title "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" ("Sorcerer's", not "Philosopher's").
