Alan Horn, the president and chief operating officer of Warner Bros., has issued another statement about the move of the Half-Blood Prince movie to July 2009; in this statement he addresses the fans directly (as far as we know, this statement has only been sent to fan sites) and says that the decision to move the film was “not taken lightly” and “never intended to upset Harry Potter fans.” He also says, “We know you have built this series into what it is.”
The full text is below:
‘Many of you have written to me to express your disappointment in our moving “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” to Summer 2009. Please be assured that we share your love for Harry Potter and would certainly never do anything to hurt any of the films. Over the past 10 years, we have nurtured and protected each film, and the integrity of the books upon which they are based, to the best of our ability. The decision to move “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” was not taken lightly, and was never intended to upset our Harry Potter fans. We know you have built this series into what it is, and we thank you for your ongoing enthusiasm and support. If I may offer a silver lining: there would have been a two-year gap between “Half-Blood Prince” and the much-anticipated first part of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” which opens in November 2010. So although we have to wait a little longer for “Half-Blood Prince,” the wait from that film until “Deathly Hallows” will be less than 18 months. I am sorry to have disappointed you now, but if you hold on a little longer, I believe it will be worth the wait.’
one thing i would like to ask,though, isn’t it a bit funny that in the first place we do not get pictures and those we do are as bad as none,we get a teaser trailer which is pathetic,warner brothers change the release dates all of a sudden and all that idiot Horn says is that ’’they love their fans’’.they simply refuse to comment on such a drastic change and compensate with absolutely LAME sentences.the movie is delayed 8 months and the reaction is ZERO. INFACT;whatever reasons they give behind the change in date are baseless. i mean,the movie is ready,public is waiting despserately for it and three months prior to the release they change their mind.Something is fishy,don’t you think?
I AM READY TO ACCEPT THE NEW DATE ONLY IF ALAN HORN RELEASES A VIDEO ON YOUTUBE IN WHICH HE IS DANCING WEARING BANANA LEAVES ,A WHOLE PILE OF NOODLES DUMPED ON HIS HEAD AND SINGING ’’WARNER BROTHERS ARE DUNGHEADS AND I AM AN A## ’’ .if he does’nt,then we want the dates BACK!!!
I would have understood if they had decided to delay the film’s release because they needed to add more or edit or make it better in any way, but they came out and admitted it was a financial decision. They have the right to delay the release, but as a movie goer, I have the right to wait until the DVD comes out and skip the movie premeir altogether. I’m that disgusted and angry!
Maybe I wouldn’t have minded this so much if they hadn’t decided to move it AFTER they had already released the trailer. Seems to me that this is a sure indication that nothing in the movie itself is going to be changed; they’re just looking for a way to squeeze as much money as they can out of us. I agree with Cecilia: go see the movie during the second week of release, so it totally screws up their opening weekend numbers.
@bella vita – Thanks for checking it out, glad you got a laugh out of it!
Seriously, folks – this really does suck. And the Harry Potter characters feel the same way – they’ve been working so hard on these movies, and to have their fans disrespected this way is causing them heartfelt grief.
For anyone who missed it first time around and needs a good laugh in the face of all this unhappiness, go here (remove the spaces after pasting the URL):
ht tp://mrssplapthing.blogspot.com/2008/08/alan-horn-voldemorts-right-hand-worm.ht ml
and here:
ht tp://mrssplapthing.blogspot.com/2008/08/great-sucking-dragon-balls-is-this-work.ht ml
“That’s an interesting thought process. I think it’s good that people are standing up to the falling standards of certain multi-billion-dollar companies. I think that sort of activism prepares people to stand up for more important rights, when those rights need to be defended.”
Damn it! It seems that I’m ill-prepared to express myself. >_<
To clarify, I have no problem whatsoever with the expression of grievances; some of these attempts to protest I’d agree with and support if I felt strongly enough about the date change. What I’m insulted by is the, as I’ve said before, infantile behavior exhibited by a lot of people, not the perfectly reasonable and inspiring calls for activism. If you can change it back or lessen the length of time we’d have to wait, go for it.
“I agree with Anne. They only care about money. Otherwise, the films would have all been done right.”
I completely disagree. WB does not make the movies; they distribute them. I won’t even ask what doing the films “right” means. :/
I hope Mr. Horn doesn’t think that this scripted statement of fake concern is going to quiet us all down. He kinda reminds me of Umbridge a little bit, trying to make us all good little children who won’t fight for something we really want. I’m sure he and his pals are busy thinking up another statement right now. What’s that saying we all know so well? Oh yes: “I must not tell lies.” Think about that and how you’re really treating the fans, Mr. Horn.
The WB is full of it. FIrst they blame it on the writer’s strike, and now they send a short, empty apology to pacify the thousands of people they dissapointed. They knew they had nothing to lose because the people who are most upset are big enough fans to go see the movie anyway. Shame on them.
Um, how about our silver lining is just giving us the effin’ movie when we were supoosed to have it?
They’re really good at making it seem like they’re doing this for our benefit, aren’t they? Keep up the good work people—at least the boycot threats and letters are starting to get a reaction already.
I’ve heard people listing a variety of options for how to respond to this. My daughter is going to see it, but only once, and a week after it comes out. After all, she will have learned a lot about waiting by then! Then she’ll just wait for the DVD.
I saw the last one three times, and I’m going to see this one only one or two—and then wait for the DVD.
I know some people already working on getting a bootlegged copy, and I know some who will see a bootlegged version before—who have never “done” bootlegged movies before.
I know one person who plans to buy a ticket for a non-WB movie, and then sneak into the HP movie after the pre-movie stuff has started. They check your ticket when you first go in, but if you go to the bathroom, they don’t check when you come back.
There are probably other options as well. If we brainstorm, we can figure out ways to push back at Warner Bros without depriving ourselves ast HP fans. I started a blog where people can share their ideas for turning Warner Bros into “Wah-Wah-Waaahhhhner Bros!”
They will only make more money if we put up with being manipulated like this.
Beyond urging everyone to make a plan to “sock it to them,” I suggest you email Warner Bros. and tell them what your plan is, whether it is seeing the movie one less time, or delaying watching it. Heck, tell them if you plan to get a pirated copy. Let them know what you think.
"She met that Potter at school and they left and got married and had you, and of course I knew you'd be just the same, just as strange, just as -- as -- [br][i]abnormal[/i] -- and then, if you please, she went and got herself blown up and we got landed wi
one thing i would like to ask,though, isn’t it a bit funny that in the first place we do not get pictures and those we do are as bad as none,we get a teaser trailer which is pathetic,warner brothers change the release dates all of a sudden and all that idiot Horn says is that ’’they love their fans’’.they simply refuse to comment on such a drastic change and compensate with absolutely LAME sentences.the movie is delayed 8 months and the reaction is ZERO. INFACT;whatever reasons they give behind the change in date are baseless. i mean,the movie is ready,public is waiting despserately for it and three months prior to the release they change their mind.Something is fishy,don’t you think?