Reboots are controversial at the best of times, but when it comes to Harry Potter – a beloved mega-franchise that only wrapped up just over a decade ago – some people consider the topic downright blasphemous.
Not that that’s stopped Warner Bros. A TV reboot of the series is currently underway for HBO (having originally been announced for Max), with the plan currently being to adapt one book per season and premiere the first season (based on “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”) in 2026.
Obviously, considering the fact that they’re all now well into their thirties, none of the original young cast are expected to return. While we wouldn’t rule out a few cameos, the odds of the Golden Trio (AKA Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint) reprising their roles are probably very slim, considering the fact that Harry Potter creator – and executive producer – JK Rowling has openly criticized them for disagreeing with her controversial views on gender identity and the transgender community.
Personally, feelings on the reboot are pretty mixed within the Harry Potter fandom. The original eight films are beloved for a reason, and it’s hard to picture anyone other than Radcliffe stepping out with the iconic scar and glasses.
At the same time, we’re also very conscious of the fact that the OG films did leave some fans wanting in the accuracy department. One major drawback of filming and releasing the movies while the books were still coming out was that key details, which later became crucial, were often left out. This forced the writers to scramble for explanations or, in some cases, skip them entirely and push forward without addressing certain plot points.
For that reason, we’re not entirely against the reboot – just as long as it manages to fill in these seven Harry Potter plot holes from the films.
Why Won’t Voldemort Use His Wand?
In the books a strange phenomenon occurs in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” During the duel in the graveyard, Harry and Voldemort’s wands connect due to the fact that they share the same cores (a phoenix feather from none other than Fawkes, Dumbledore’s pet phoenix. Why does Dumbledore routinely hand out his bird’s feathers for Ollivander production? That’s a whole other baffling discussion).
For that reason, they experience something called Priori Incantatum, which shows a wand’s most recent spells. In the case of the Dark Lord, these happen to be killing curses, which is why his most recent victims, such as Cedric Diggory, emerge from the ether to help Harry.
This happens in the films, too, but we never get an explanation about Priori Incantatum. That also makes Voldemort’s (Ralph Fiennes) subsequent refusal to fight Harry with his own wand – and borrowing Lucius Malfoy’s (Jason Isaacs) wand to finally try to do so in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010) – pretty confusing.
In the books, it’s clear Voldemort holds back because he knows he’s at a disadvantage. But in the films, it comes off as if he simply can’t be bothered to face off against the teenager who keeps unraveling his elaborate schemes to take over the wizarding world. Whoever plays Voldemort in the reboot (some fans are hoping it’s Cillian Murphy), we hope he’s given a better explanation.
Where Did Harry’s Mirror Come From?
There’s a scene at the beginning of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011) where Harry stares into a fragment of a mirror. If you’re a film fan, it seems like Harry’s just a strange shattered glass hoarder. However, this makes perfect sense to book fans.
In “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” Sirius Black, Harry’s godfather, gives Harry a mysterious Christmas gift to use any time he needs to talk to him. He never opens it, concerned about what Sirius would do to talk to him. After his godfather is killed, however, he opens it to reveal a magic two-way mirror, which he then smashes in frustration after discovering it won’t help him talk to Sirius from beyond the grave.
This is the shard that Harry uses, having kept it for sentimental reasons. In the book, it’s later revealed that Aberforth Dumbledore (Ciarán Hinds) procured Sirius’ (the Academy Award-winning Gary Oldman) mirror, which is how he communicates with Harry and sends Dobby to save him from Malfoy Manor. In the film, however, Dobby just randomly appears. Considering the lack of explanations all around, it’s odd that the filmmakers even bothered adding that mirror shard in at all.
Where Did Dobby Go?
Speaking of everyone’s favorite House Elf – where has he been for all this time?
The films only give Dobby two outings – Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, the latter of which sees him killed by Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) while helping Harry and friends escape the clutches of Death Eaters.
In the books, however, Dobby reappears in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” and “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” During each book, he helps Harry out of a few sticky situations. For example, in the fourth Harry Potter book, it’s revealed that he’s now working in the Hogwarts kitchens, and he gives Harry the Gillyweed to survive the Second Task (in the films, it’s Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) who does this).
The next two books see him give Harry the idea of running Dumbledore’s Army from the Room of Requirement (again, it’s Neville who just happens to stumble across the room in the film) and be tasked with tailing Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) when Harry rightly suspects him of having become a Death Eater. Dobby and Harry form more of a friendship in the books, making his noble sacrifice in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” even more affecting.
In the films, however, it just feels a bit more random that he pops up out of nowhere. It also makes zero sense that he knows Sirius’ House Elf, Kreacher, with the books explaining that Harry sends Kreacher to Hogwarts after inheriting him post-Sirius’ death. (Yes, Harry really inherits a slave in the books).
Does Harry Ever Get His Wand Back?!
In both the book and film adaptation of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” Harry’s wand is accidentally broken by Hermione while Disapparating the pair out of Godric’s Hollow when Voldemort’s snake, Nagini, attacks. Harry is left using substitute wands for the rest of the last installment’s events, eventually wresting one from the grip of Draco Malfoy.
The good news is that after becoming the Master of the Elder Wand – the most powerful wand in the world – he finally has the only wand capable of fixing his original. He does so at the end of the last book before announcing that he’ll leave the Elder Wand to rest in Dumbledore’s tomb.
In the film, things don’t exactly go this way. Harry does become Master of the Elder Wand, but he doesn’t fix his wand. He also doesn’t return the Elder Wand to Dumbledore’s tomb. Instead, he snaps it and throws it off a bridge. (A bridge that magically appears outside Hogwarts in the last film, but that’s a whole other plot hole).
Fans were left screaming at the screen, wondering why on earth Harry wouldn’t fix the wand he loves so much. Harry genuinely mourns his wand when it breaks in the books, so for him to just be like, “Oh well, guess that’s over” in the film makes zero sense.
How Do Death Eaters Keep Finding Harry, Ron, and Hermione?
Uttering Lord Voldemort’s name is taboo at the best of times in both the books and films, with wizards preferring to say “He Who Must Not Be Named” or “You Know Who” instead. In “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” an actual magical taboo is placed on the name, which means Death Eaters are alerted and summoned every time someone dares to utter it out loud.
This is how Death Eaters manage to find Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger in London after escaping the wedding and kidnap them to Malfoy Manor when Harry accidentally blurts it out loud in the woods. This is all explained in the books, but in the films, it looks like the Death Eaters just have a lucky habit of stumbling across the trio in the oddest places.
Why Is Harry’s Stag Patronus Important?
A Patronus tends to reveal something about a person’s self in the Harry Potter universe. Harry’s Patronus is a stag, just like his father’s Patronus – and his identity as an Animagus. It’s revealed in “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” that the Marauders (the name given to James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew) learned how to transform into animals to keep Lupin company during his werewolf transformations.
The films never bother explaining this. While we see Harry’s Patronus as a stag, we never find out why that’s relevant. It eradicates one of the strongest emotional ties between Harry and his parents from the story and also makes the whole concept of the Marauders and their nicknames (Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs) pretty confusing.
How Does Harry Have His Mother’s Eyes?!
Few remarks are uttered quite as often in the Harry Potter series as “You have your mother’s eyes.” In the books, it’s always said that Harry’s startlingly green eyes are just like those of Lily Potter, his mother. That’s one of the key reasons why Snape can’t bear to look at him – and why he continues to help him, out of a lingering love for Lily.
Daniel Radcliffe has blue eyes, which would’ve still worked if they’d cast an actress with blue eyes as his mother. When we flashback to a young Lily in Snape’s memories, however, we’re immediately treated to a closeup of Lily’s very brown eyes. She’s only in brief scenes, so it’s confusing why the filmmakers never decided to either use contacts or post-production to strengthen this link between the characters – especially when the flashback scenes follow Snape quite literally saying, “You have your mother’s eyes” to Harry as he dies.
What are your most frustrating Harry Potter film plot holes?
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