Hang on everyone, there is a new rumor tonight regarding famous directors and a possible two part Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows film. The Daily Mail is reporting tonight that crews currently working on “Half-Blood Prince” have been told the final Harry Potter film “will be released in two halves.” The article then points out while the financial benefit would be significant (“it could mean a £500million bonus in ticket sales”) the paper reports this purported move is artistic, citing an unnamed source who says:
“There’s so much to fit that the view is the last movie should be in two halves. There is a huge battle when Harry, played by Daniel Radcliffe, takes on Voldemort that needs to be done really well.”
The article then goes on to cite that Warner Bros, which has still not formally announced a director for the final film, is considering some big name directors for the final movie, including legendary Oscar winning director Steven Spielberg. Quotage: At Warner Bros, who are rumoured to be thinking of Oscars and a big-name director such as Steven Spielberg for the final film, a spokesman said: “People are discussing all possibilities.”
Readers will remember, and as cited by J.K. Rowling on her website, Steven Spielberg had considered directing the first Harry Potter film, but declined. As we have reported previously as well, other names have surfaced in regards to directing “Deathly Hallows” including Alfonso Cuaron, David Yates, Chris Columbus, and most recently Guillermo Del Toro. As exciting as all of this sounds, please keep this one very much in the rumor category for the time being. We are trying to verify this, and will update with more when we can.
While a few projects like Lord of the Rings and Gone with the Wind have worked well with very lengthy pieces, others have not. With the right director and scriptwriter, it might work. But they have to be careful with this.
As for Spielberg, I too am very skeptical. I really enjoy a lot of his work, but I’m not sure he is the right man for this particular project.
If they did it, I would hope we get more of the character development for Ron and Hermione (BOTH of them. I LOVE the locket scene with Ron, which I pray isn’t overly simplified or done away with).
I think most intense potter fans (including myself) that the movies will never do the books justice. However as a movie with no relation to the potter books at all Deathly Hallows is gonna be an amazing action packed movie. However if it was split in two not only would it completely alienate it from the books, but it would also mean the movie would end at a weird spot causing confusion for non-readers (not that they don’t deserve it :P). Anyways thats just my two cents on the whole thing.
Well I like the Spielberg aspect….this film needs to be epic.
But when I saw the words two parter, I freaked! There is NO way that they should do that. Elongate the film to three hours, perhpas, but split it…nuh-uh.
Not if you want this to be the film people remember. This series needs to go out with a bang…one big loud impressive leads to acadamy nods bang.
Not two fairly good bangs.
WB would be shooting themsleves in the foot if they did that. I pray to god none of this is true.
Well, if it is true, I’d bet ten galleons the first half will be called “HP and the Deathly Hallows” and the second “HP and the Elder Wand”.
It’d mean a huge pay day for everyone(WB, JK etc.) if it was released in two parts, particularly because it could all be filmed at once. Plus,that would put the 2-half of DH coming out around the same time the World of Harry Potter opens it’s gates at Universal.
WHOOHOOO!!!!! FINALLY!!! I have been begging for this for years. I definitely think that this is the way to go. Everybody wins. WB makes more money, and the fans get all the goodies that they want from the book. Who cares if we have to wait for it? We fans are used to waiting long for what we want, and waiting for a while for a 5-hour telling of the last novel is more than worth waiting for! And, I really hope that Guillermo del Toro or Alfonso Cuaron directs them!!!! YAY!!! :D :D
“Not if you want this to be the film people remember. This series needs to go out with a bang…one big loud impressive leads to acadamy nods bang. Not two fairly good bangs. WB would be shooting themsleves in the foot if they did that. I pray to God none of this is true. Posted by ccm&hp on January 13, 2008 @ 12:00 AM”
WELL SAID! Exactly. I hope someone from WB sees your post.
i think a to part release would be great! I just wonder how long inbetween part one and two we would have to wait…..However, and i don”t want to start a fight, I think everyone is entitled to his/her opinion….. Spielberg would kill it! I like him and some of his work but it would bring a fast passed, “Hollywood”, cookie cutter action film feel to Harry Potter which would kill the magic. (which is what HP is, magical, on screen,in the books, and in the minds of viewers and readers everywhere) Aside from the extensive cuts, and short scenes, which were probably forced on Yates by the producers and the studio, who actually probably forced it on the writer before Yates. I liked him the best!..
I think that OotP was the least successful of the films precisely because everything was rushed and there was no time to really develop the plot correctly. Some really important things were left out: the Locket in the drawing room, Lily Potter in Snape’s worst memory and Harry giving the interview to Rita and the Quibbler (not to mention the scene I wanted to see with Harry getting “Career Advice”).
People are mistaken if they think that a two part movie means that there would be a year between the first and second part. It would all be filmed at once so the second half would be released like a month later or something like that. Every time I read DH I cringe at the thought of any of it being cut. A single three hour movie might very easily lose the entire Dobby subplot, since we haven’t seen him in the movies since COS.
As for Spielberg, he’s one of my favorite directors, but given a choice I’dlike to see Cuaron direct DH. If you saw “Children of Men” you know that he could keep the intensity level up to the standard set in the book.
Posted by ravenclaw from Glenn on January 13, 2008, 05:08 AM
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I think you can have it in two parts and still have it end with a bang. The entire battle at Hogwarts is epic and could take up to 30-45 minutes to film (hogsmeade, the DA and everyone meeting in the RoR, snape leaving hogwarts, getting the house’s together, snape’s memory, the diadem, the first fight, going into the forbidden forrest, the fight after the forbidden forrest) on second thought…I would say an hour is right there…if it’s done right! The first film would be good to end at the part when they get caught in the forrest, or the best being when our favorite house elf dies. To me, that is a turning point in the book. Harry changes right then and there and everything starts to click. Plus it would leave the audience wanting more. It would also give plenty of action for the first and second part.
Also keep in mind the people that run studios (WB) are only worried about how much money there gonna make and not much else. Not only that but alot of them dont even know much about movies ! some of them probably dont even read!!!!!!
Two parts would be great, Speilburg, would be a HORRIBLE choice. I hope that part is a rumour, and the just use a mixture of some of the past directors, like Alfonzo. But if they had two parts for DH, that would be so great. I would watch a three part, if it meant including everything. Although, watching the deaths of favorite characters on scene would be far more depressing.
oh, that would be awesome!!! i would love having 2 parts! then they could fit everything, even all the little subplots, into it. plus if we have to wait, that would just draw out the excitement more and make the harry potter movie’s magic last just a little bit longer. but i hope spielberg doesnt do it, after finding out what he wanted to do with the first movie, im just not sure this is the best series for him.
People are mistaken if they think that a two part movie means that there would be a year between the first and second part. It would all be filmed at once so the second half would be released like a month later or something like that.
WB would never do that, because the casual movie goers will say screw this I’m not going to the first part, I’ll wait a month till I got to watch the big battle movie. Anyways everyone’s entitled to their opinions, but I’m really worried about how many people seem to be supporting a 2 part movie, I’d love a 5 hour movie if that was possible, but its not and the next best thing is a 3 hour movie, not two 2 1/2 hour movies, that could ruin the credibility of the films in years to come.
Personally, and I know I am one of very few who believe this, but I love OotP and what Yates did with the movie. I am so excited about HBP because of how OotP went. And obviously I am not alone because it was the second highest grossing movie of the franchise! I would love for him to do DH as well. Anyone but Columbus and Speilberg.
lol wow 4 hours thats really long…..
I would watch it, maybe only once haha